EC135 H135 | |
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General information | |
Type | Light utility helicopter |
National origin | Multinational |
Manufacturer | Airbus Helicopters (Since 2014) Eurocopter |
Status | In service |
Number built | 1400 (Sep. 2020)[1] |
History | |
Manufactured | 1995–present |
Introduction date | 1996 |
First flight | 15 February 1994 |
Developed from | MBB Bo 105 |
Variants | Eurocopter EC635 |
The Airbus Helicopters H135 (formerly Eurocopter EC135) is a twin-engine civil light utility helicopter produced by Airbus Helicopters, formerly Eurocopter. It is capable of flight under instrument flight rules (IFR) and is outfitted with a digital automatic flight control system (AFCS). First flying in February 1994, it entered service in 1996. 1,400 have been delivered up to September 2020, to 300 operators in 60 countries, accumulating over 5 million flight hours. It is mainly used for air medical transport (medevac), corporate transport, law enforcement, offshore wind support, and military flight training. Half of them are in Europe and a quarter in North America. The H135M, certified under the name Eurocopter EC635, is a military variant, so the overall design is known as the Airbus Helicopters H135 and the military version, as the Airbus Helicopters H135M. The EC135/H135 is a development of the earlier Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm (MBB) Bo 105.