Airbus Helicopters has signed a contract with His Excellency, Sheikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, Minister of Interior of Bahrain, for the purchase of nine H145 helicopters which will be operated by the Police Aviation Command for law enforcement missions and emergency medical services.
Olivier Michalon, EVP for Global Business of Airbus Helicopters, said: “We are very proud that the Ministry of Interior of Bahrain has chosen to become a new member of the H145 worldwide community. We are sure that the H145 will quickly become a valuable new asset for the Bahraini police. As a truly multi-role helicopter, the H145’s versatility makes it a key asset for public safety missions around the world and in the region. More than 60 H145s are already in service in the Middle East and demand for this type of helicopter continues to grow for a vast array of missions — emergency medical services, operations in the energy sector, law enforcement and utility missions.”
The new version of Airbus’ H145 light twin-engine helicopter adds a new, innovative five-bladed rotor to the multi-mission aircraft, increasing the useful load of the helicopter by 150kg. The simplicity of the new bearingless main rotor design also eases maintenance operations, further improving the benchmark serviceability and reliability of the H145, while improving ride comfort for both passengers and crew.
In total, there are more than 1,700 H145 family helicopters in service, logging a total of eight million flight hours. Powered by two Safran Arriel 2E engines, the H145 is equipped with full authority digital engine control (FADEC) and the Helionix digital avionics suite. It includes a high-performance four-axis autopilot, increasing safety and reducing pilot workload. Its particularly low acoustic footprint makes the H145 the quietest helicopter in its class, while its CO
2 emissions are the lowest among its competitors.