Airbus Helicopters reported it has recorded orders for more than 35 new single- and twin-engine Airbus air medical helicopters over the past 12 months. Romain Trapp, president of Airbus Helicopters, said, “We recognize that helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) providers rely on their helicopters to save lives, and we remain dedicated to providing them with state-of-the-art options they can count on when minutes matter.”
Customers include Atrium Health, which will add three new twin-engine H135 helicopters to its MedCenter Air emergency and critical care patient transport services in the Carolinas, further enhancing its existing H135 fleet. Global Medical Response (GMR), which operates Airbus H125s, H130s, H135s and H145s, ordered two new H135s this year, adding to an existing 2021 order.
Airbus’s five-blade H145 won orders from Midwest and Northeast air medical operators—respectively, OSF HealthCare, currently serving Peoria, Bloomington, Peru, Galesburg, and Rockford, Illinois, with its fleet of four H145s; and Boston MedFlight, which placed a multi-year order for six H145s. The Massachusetts-based operator was the first in the U.S. to place an order for air medical H145s.
Minnesota’s Mayo Clinic has also opted for a pair of H145s, adding to its 2021 order for a single example. And farther west, the Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation will acquire and donate a single-engine H125 to the Hawaii Fire Department for search and rescue missions.
Hopefully they will have a better experience with Airbus than us. Nobody returns calls, provides support or training! In fact, we have been out of service for 8 weeks because they use a specialty oil in the gearbox that is currently unavailable and out of stock worldwide yet provide no alternatives. Ready to sell it and go back to Bell.
Amen to going back to Bell.