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| Japan Coast Guard (JCG) orders two additional H225 helicopters on 6 April 2020. Photo Airbus/ANTHONY PECCHI |
Japan Coast Guard (JCG), has placed a new order of two H225 helicopters and is a follow-on order that brings JCG’s Super Puma fleet to 15, comprising two AS332s and 13 H225s. The new helicopters will be utilised for territorial coastal activities, security enforcement, as well as disaster relief missions in Japan.
“We thank the Japan Coast Guard for its continued confidence in the H225,” said Guillaume Leprince, Managing Director of Airbus Helicopters in Japan. “The H225 is well regarded as a reference in search-and-rescue operations and security enforcement, and we are certainly happy to see these helicopters effectively deployed in Japan through the years. We have delivered three new H225 to JCG in the recent months, within schedule, and are committed to fully supporting its existing fleet, as well as its upcoming deliveries, ensuring high availability for its operations.”
The JCG’s H225s are covered by Airbus’ HCare Smart full-by-the-hour material support. This customised fleet availability programme allows JCG to focus on its flight operations whilst Airbus manages its assets.
The 11-ton-category, twin-engine H225 is the latest member of Airbus Helicopters’ Super Puma family. Equipped with state-of-the-art electronic instruments and renowned autopilot precision, the all-weather capable H225 offers outstanding endurance and fast cruise speed and can be fitted with various equipment to suit any role.
In Japan alone, a total of 28 helicopters from the Super Puma family are currently flown by civil, parapublic operators, and Japan’s Ministry of Defense for various search and rescue missions, offshore operations, VIP, fire-fighting, and passenger and goods transportation.
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| Photo Airbus |
The H225 is the latest version in Airbus’ proven Super Puma family, which has accumulated more than 5.8 million flight hours during operations around the world, in the harshest conditions including severe icing conditions and highly challenging maritime environments. Moreover, its military version, the H225M, has operated in the most demanding combat SAR (CSAR) missions.
H225 avionics and autopilot systems reduce crew workload while enhancing safety, especially in the most demanding mission phases or conditions, through enhanced situational awareness and automatic modes or protections.
The flight crew benefits from the real-time display of power margins, and from automatic features such as automatic level-off at low heights, an automatic collision avoidance procedure, vortex ring protection, automatic rig approach up to the visual decision point, RNP approach down to LPV minima (precision approach), search pattern, automatic transition down to hover (Trans-Down), and fly away.
The H225 is a true all-weather helicopter, the only helicopter with full de-icing certified for flights up to severe icing conditions.
The H225 is recognised as the reference in SAR operations thanks to a takeoff sequence of less than five minutes; an all-weather capability including in severe icing conditions; and an extra-long range with auxiliary fuel tanks, leaving its long cabin free for the mission.
Cockpit crew benefit from SAR modes with search patterns and an automatic transition to hover with one-metre precision starting from any flight attitude. The work of cabin crew is aided by precise hoisting and hover control from the cabin, as well as the H225’s long cabin with wet and dry areas, large windows and wide sliding doors.
A range of mission equipment is available, such as an electro-optical system (EOS), searchlights, cabin console, hailer public address system, an automatic identification system (AIS), direction finder, radar, dual hoist and stretchers.
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