At the turn of November/December, two upgraded NH90 (Helikopter 14) Helicopters were flown home to Sweden, one from Finland and the other from France, after undergoing modification to gain full capability and equipment level. Helikopter 14 is one of the world’s most modern helicopters for troop transport, rescue missions, surface target reconnaissance and submarine hunting. The Swedish Armed Forces have 18 helicopters of the model, of which eleven have undergone or will undergo upgrades to the final configuration, which gives the helicopters full capability according to the Swedish Armed Forces’ requirement. This is done in the Retrofit project and the work takes place on site at the suppliers in France and Finland. The measures also include adding new equipment, such as tactical radar in all helicopters.
In recent months, two different teams from the project have worked in parallel in France and Finland with delivery control of two helicopters, where specialists from FMV and the Armed Forces have inspected that the helicopters are built in line with the agreement and that the documentation is correct. Running two parallel delivery controls in two countries at the same time has been a challenge for the project. Many people have worked hard to make this possible. Helikopter 14, which is the Swedish name for the NH90 from NATO Helicopter Industries, is a European collaborative project and has been ordered by several countries. The medium-heavy helicopter is the first system built in composite materials and with fly-by-wire flight controls. This means that it makes future updates possible, unlike conventional helicopters with mechanical control. Sweden ordered eighteen helicopters of the model in the early 2000s. And now seventeen pieces have been delivered in final configuration.
“The collaboration between NATO Helicopter Industries, the Swedish Armed Forces and FMV has been a joy. And we hope that it will go just as well next year,” says Kjell Andersson. Kjell Andersson and Heimo Räsänen, both from FMV, have led the respective working groups in Finland and France. They agree that the deliveries were made possible through thorough and detailed planning, but above all a well-knit team.
“It seemed impossible before with two parallel teams, but now we have actually done it. This is thanks to the excellent cooperation between FMV, the Swedish Armed Forces and industry. We have now contributed to further strengthening the capability and availability, which feels extremely important in the current situation, and we can look forward to a wonderful Christmas break with well-deserved rest,” says Lena Matz, FMV, project manager for Helikopter 14.
The NHIndustries NH90 is a European medium-sized, twin-engine, multirole military helicopter. It was developed in response to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) requirements for a battlefield helicopter which would also be capable of being operated in naval environments. The NH90 was developed and is manufactured by NHIndustries, a collaborative company owned by Airbus Helicopters (formally Eurocopter) and Leonardo (formerly AgustaWestland) and Fokker Aerostructures. The first prototype conducted its maiden flight in December 1995; the type first entered operational service in 2007. As of June 2022, the NH90 logged 327,053 flight hours in the armed forces of thirteen countries. It is an advanced but high maintenance military helicopter employed by a dozen countries in two major versions. There is a Naval version that can land on ships and is used for sea rescue and submarine warfare, and an Army version that has been used for transporting cargo, people, medivac, and special operations.
