The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) has taken delivery of its first H225M “Caracal” medium lift helicopter in Singapore. On 7 November 2016, Singapore announced that the H225M would replace its existing Super Pumas, which had been in service since 1983, after a rigorous evaluation process. This would enable the Republic of Singapore Air Force to meet its requirements for a wide spectrum of operations, including Search and Rescue (SAR), Aeromedical Evacuation (AME) and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations, more efficiently with fewer helicopters and less manpower.
Congratulating Singapore on the H225Ms, Airbus Helicopters CEO Bruno Even said: “Airbus is very happy to celebrate this important milestone with the RSAF. This delivery is exceptionally significant as Airbus and the RSAF overcame the COVID-19 pandemic challenges in 2020 to achieve a smooth handover of the helicopter. The RSAF has been a long-term partner of Airbus since its first Aerospatiale SA316B Alouette III entered into service more than 50 years ago. We appreciate the trust Singapore has placed in our helicopters, and we look forward to the H225Ms playing a critical role in the RSAF for many years to come.
The Airbus Helicopters H225M is a long-range tactical transport helicopter developed from the Eurocopter AS532 Cougar for military use. The helicopter is marketed for troop transport, casualty evacuation, and combat search and rescue duties, and is similar to the civilian EC225 Super Puma. A combat-proven multi-purpose and versatile asset, the H225M enables military forces to deploy wherever and whenever needed. H225Ms are currently in service across the world, having accumulated more than 143,000 flight hours. The H225M is relied upon by Brazil, France, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico Thailand to support their most demanding missions.
It is a twin-engined aircraft and can carry up to 28 seated troops along with two crew, depending on customer configuration. The armed version carries gun pods, rocket pods and Hellfire air-to-surface missiles (HForce Generic Weapon System (GWS) with Thales Scorpion helmet-mounted sight display (HMSD) and Wescam electro-optical sensor. Brazilian H225s are equipped with a Helibras-built countermeasures suite, which includes chaff and flares to confuse radar and heat-guided missiles respectively; Thales has also produced self-protection systems to equip French H225s.
