The Airbus Helicopters H145 in late January underwent several days of marine-related mission trials in Germany performing in a variety of challenging conditions. 

Wiking Helikopter Service used the H145 to test its suitability to lower harbor pilots via a winch onto the decks of moving ships. Lars Hilgert, chief flight coordinator at Wiking, said the company is “Very positively surprised with the Helionix cockpit of the H145 and its four-axis autopilot with auto-hover function. These systems contribute to the helicopter’s high levels of safety in every scenario. At the same time the workload of the crew is reduced, allowing them to safely accomplish their mission even in the harshest of weathers.”

Wiking also found the helicopter well-suited for helicopter EMS work. “Our rescue helicopters are constantly on standby for offshore HEMS. Every unit is staffed with a doctor and an assistant and ready to embark on a mission in a minimum amount of time. The H145 would qualify perfectly for these missions, given that it features tremendous levels of performance and a spacious cabin,” said Wiking managing director Alexander von Plato.

Flight testing also included wind park Alpha Ventus in the German Bight, landing on the transformer platform, and hoisting technicians onto offshore wind turbines in winds up to 50 knots for HTM Offshore, a company that specializes in transferring personnel to turbines with a fleet of H135s. Bernd Brucherseifer, managing director of HTM, said, “With wind parks emerging increasingly farther away from the coastline we are reliant on a versatile but also efficient helicopter fleet. The H145 would be an ideal addition to our 11 Airbus Helicopters H135s as it can carry more passengers and travel for longer distances. Despite its spacious cabin the main rotor has a very small diameter, making it perfectly suited for approaching wind turbines.”