Air Greenland has ordered two heavy Airbus Helicopters H225. The twin-engine rotorcraft are repurposed from the oil and gas industry. Air Greenland CEO Jacob Nitter Sørensen said: “These two specific aircraft have low numbers of flight hours and their remarkable capability on SAR operations ensures that they will be able to provide a highly effective service in that role for many years to come”. Indeed, Air Greenland’s order is to support its bid to win Greenland’s search and rescue contract. The H225 and military H225M are benchmarks in SAR and combat SAR . The two Airbus-manufactured helicopters will be delivered over the coming months to replace S-61s currently used for these operations. Furthermore, Airbus will provide a comprehensive maintenance and support package as well as pilot and crew training.

The latest member of Airbus Helicopters’ Super Puma family, the H225, is an 11-tonne category twin-engine rotorcraft. It is operated by two pilots and can be configured with up to 18 seats or six stretchers. Its full anti-icing is one of the asset of the helicopter that “will help ensure the safety of global maritime traffic transiting the Greenland-Iceland gap to and from the Arctic region”, as mentions Airbus Helicopters Head of Europe Region Olivier Michalon.