EASA Certifies Airbus Helicopters' H145 For Max Take-Off Weight

Airbus Helicopters has been awarded the certification of the increased maximum take-off weight (MTOW) for the H145 by European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in December last year.

With this enhancement, the helicopter can carry an extra 50kg, raising the MTOW to a total of 3.7 metric tons. It will be available for customers in early 2016. As the improvement does not require any structural modifications or additional equipment, it will not cause extra costs for the operators, the company said in a statement Thursday.

“By raising the MTOW we are improving the mission capability of the H145, which is beneficial for all operators, especially in emergency medical services (EMS), law enforcement and offshore missions, where both high payload and maximum range are directly relevant for efficient helicopter operations”, said Manfred Merk, Head of the H145 programme. “The new MTOW converts in pure useful load, be it more payload or more fuel.”

The H145 incorporates Arriel 2E engines and full-composite Fenestron shrouded tail rotor, as well as digital avionics suite Helionix with 4-axis autopilot.