In less than 20 years, Airbus Helicopters has delivered more than 350 H225Ms. Built in Marignane, this aircraft has established itself as a benchmark for military and civil uses.
Airbus Helicopters has won a contract for 12 H225M multirole helicopters from the Republic of Iraq. In fact, it will be 14 aircraft if we add two upgraded second-hand aircraft. This is the third order of the year in this highly competitive field.
In June, Germany ordered 44 for the police. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2029. In April, Japan signed a contract for three aircraft, this time for its coast guard. In total, since its entry into service in the French army, the manufacturer has already delivered 350.
Good news for employment in the region since the H225M is built in Marignane, in the Bouches-du-Rhône. It is impossible to miss the site when driving on the highway. The factories extend over several kilometers. Airbus Helicopters is also the largest employer in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region.
Descendant of the Super Puma
This ability to adapt to all types of missions, civil or military, makes the Caracal, the name of the H225M in the French army, a world reference. A bit like its ancestor before it, the Super Puma, of which it is the ultimate version. It is equipped with cutting-edge innovations such as an automatic piloting system allowing maneuvers in the most complicated conditions, the manufacturer assures us.
“It is a versatile aircraft that can be equipped according to the missions assigned to it. It is used for troop transport with a capacity of more than 20 people, for medical evacuation, for combat rescue in hostile zones and for attack missions,” Airbus Helicopters explained to BFM Business.
Iraq has opted for the latter version. The ordered units will be equipped with articulated arms to receive rocket launchers.
Soon 13 countries to be customers of the H225M?
Iraq is now the tenth country to have equipped itself with it. Among them, France, of course, but also Malaysia, Indonesia and Kuwait. The manufacturer’s list of customers will grow in the coming months.
A contract is currently being negotiated with the Netherlands, which wants to equip its special forces with 14 maneuver helicopters for an estimated amount of between 1 and 2.5 billion euros. In this transaction, the Caracal was in competition with the Blackhawk of Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the F-35, the rival aircraft of the Rafale in Europe.
Another file that has been ongoing for several years is that with the United Arab Emirates. The contract for 12 aircraft was almost cancelled in 2013, but it is continuing according to our sources. A third contract is reportedly under discussion with Morocco, but Airbus has not commented on a future signature.
