Airbus: 10 billion euros contract for helicopters for the French armed forces

These devices delivered from 2027 "will be divided between the Army (80), the National Navy (49) and the Air and Space Army (40)", specified the Ministry of the Armed Forces. in a press release.

These H160Ms, a version derived from the recent civilian H160 model from the helicopter branch of Airbus, will replace the Gazelle, Alouette III, Dauphin, Panther and Fennec helicopters, some of which have been in service for more than 40 years.

Eleven additional aircraft were also ordered from Airbus, including ten H160 for the National Gendarmerie, an order "decided within the framework of the support plan for the aeronautical industry, for an amount of more than 200 million euros".

The 11th is intended for the Directorate General of Armament "to ensure flight tests for the development and qualification of equipment and future weapon systems", according to the ministry.

Provided for by the Military Programming Law 2019-2025, the order for the armed forces was initially to be placed in 2022, but the Minister of the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, had decided in 2019 to bring it forward by one year.

The Minister of the Armed Forces Florence Parly, September 16, 2021 in Paris Ludovic MARIN AFP / Archives

It was his predecessor, Jean-Yves Le Drian, who first mentioned this order in March 2017, at the same time as the choice of the H160M as the technical base for the single platform of the "Light joint helicopter" (HIL) program. .

Impact on employment

"By ensuring the progressive replacement of five different types of aircraft, some of which have been in service for more than 40 years, the Cheetah will provide our armies with the means to carry out their missions more effectively for the next 40 years", s' is congratulated Mrs Parly, quoted in the press release.

In addition, for her, "this program perpetuates the know-how and jobs of Airbus Helicopters, the European leader in civil and military helicopters".

This order for 169 Cheetahs, "including the first 30 in firm phase, is part of a global market of ten billion euros" which includes, in addition to the development and delivery of devices, "the supply of the support system and training "and" maintenance in operational condition for ten years ", according to the ministry.

"The production of the Cheetah will irrigate the entire French aeronautical sector and will help sustainably maintain more than 2,000 jobs in France", underlined the Ministry of the Armed Forces, adding that this contract secured "the industrial activity of the Airbus Helicopters site in Marignane for Next 15 years ".

From the same source, this contract will also benefit "SMEs throughout the country with 80% of the suppliers of H160 parts installed in France, mainly in the south".

Very dependent on oil prices, the civil helicopter market suffered in 2020 from the drop in prices following the pandemic: last year, Airbus Helicopters recorded 268 net orders against 310 in 2019.

Wednesday's order will give more oxygen to an H160 program launched ten years ago and to which the European aircraft manufacturer has spent around one billion euros.

Airbus, which claims 48% of the world market for civil turbine helicopters with more than five seats, had so far sold the H160 to around forty units.

"The H160M will be synonymous with new capabilities for the armed forces" because "adapted to modern conflicts," said Bruno Even, president of Airbus Helicopters, quoted in a statement from his company.

He considered it "very important for us" to have the French armies as a launch customer for the H160M.

Even before this new contract, Airbus was already ending 2021 with a bang.

The Australian company Qantas announced on December 16 that it had chosen the European company for its future single-aisle domestic routes, a contract of up to 134 aircraft, A220 and A320neo family.

A few hours later, the Air France-KLM group placed a firm order for 100 units of the A320neo, along with acquisition rights for 60 more for its companies KLM and Transavia, which, like Qantas, have so far only operated aircraft from the eternal competitor Boeing.

© 2021 AFP