Airbus Helicopters, in partnership with Babcock, has secured a contract to maintain 48 EC145s operated by the French Ministry of Interior. The 12-year agreement, commencing this year, was inked with the Direction de la Maintenance Aéronautique (DMAé), the body responsible for aircraft maintenance within the French government. This contract encompasses the maintenance support for 33 EC145s used by the Sécurité Civile and 15 EC145s operated by the Gendarmerie air forces, stationed across 41 bases in France, including five bases in French overseas territories. It includes technical assistance, spare parts supply, logistics solutions, technical data management and software support.
“The Sécurité Civile and Gendarmerie Nationale play a key role in safeguarding our communities in France. We are proud to have signed this contract, which demonstrates their confidence in us and strengthens our partnership,” said Romain Trapp, Airbus Helicopters' Executive Vice President Customer Support and Services. “We measure our responsibility in guaranteeing that their EC145s are available 24/7 for their critical missions”.
Airbus Helicopters and Babcock are committed to ensuring the availability of Sécurité Civile and Gendarmerie EC145s for their vital missions in serving the French populace. These helicopters are utilised for search and rescue, emergency medical services, and firefighting missions, with Gendarmerie EC145s also engaged in law enforcement operations.
In addition to maintenance support, Airbus is actively involved in modernising the Sécurité Civile and Gendarmerie helicopter fleets. Sécurité Civile has already integrated four new H145s ordered in 2021, also benefiting from support services provided by Airbus Helicopters and Babcock. Furthermore, a contract was finalised in late 2023 for the procurement of 42 H145s for the French Ministry of Interior (36 for Sécurité Civile and six for the Gendarmerie), with aircraft deliveries slated to commence in 2024.
