Airbus Helicopters facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Airbus Helicopters SAS

Type	Division
Industry	Aerospace
Founded	1992; 33 years ago (1992)
Headquarters	Marseille Provence Airport Marignane, France
Key people	Bruno Even (CEO)
Products	H125 H130 H135 H145 H155 H160 H175 H215 H225 NH90 Tiger
Revenue	€6.5 billion (2021)
Operating income	€535 million (2021)
Number of employees	20,126 (2021)
Parent	Airbus

Airbus Helicopters SAS is a major company that builds helicopters. It is the helicopter-making part of Airbus, a very large aerospace company. Airbus Helicopters is the biggest helicopter manufacturer in the world. They lead in sales and in delivering turbine helicopters. In 2020, they held 48% of the global market.

Their main office is located at Marseille Provence Airport in Marignane, France. They also have big factories in Donauwörth, Germany. Other production sites are in countries like Spain, Brazil, Canada, and the United States. The company was first called Eurocopter. It changed its name to Airbus Helicopters on January 2, 2014.

How Airbus Helicopters Started

Airbus Helicopters began in 1992. It was formed when two big companies joined their helicopter divisions. These companies were Aérospatiale from France and DASA from Germany. The new company was first named Eurocopter S.A.

The history of these companies goes back a long way. It includes famous names like Louis Blériot in France. In Germany, it includes companies like Messerschmitt. Before the merger, Aérospatiale had a larger share of the world's helicopter market. Because of this, Aérospatiale owned 70% of Eurocopter. DASA owned the remaining 30%.

Amazing Helicopter Firsts

Eurocopter and its older companies achieved many "firsts" in helicopter history.

• In 1955, they made the first production helicopter powered by a turboshaft engine. This was the Aérospatiale Alouette II.
• They introduced the Fenestron tail rotor in 1968 on the Aérospatiale Gazelle. This is a special fan-like tail rotor that is safer.
• In 1984, the Eurocopter AS332 Super Puma was the first helicopter certified to fly in icy conditions.
• The NHIndustries NH90 was the first production helicopter with a Fly-by-wire control system. It first flew with this system in 2003.
• An EC135 test helicopter was the first to use a Fly-by-light control system. This happened in 2003.
• In 2005, an AS350 B3 helicopter made the first-ever landing on Mount Everest. This was a huge achievement!

Becoming Part of Airbus

In 2000, Aérospatiale and DASA merged again. This time, they joined with CASA from Spain to create Airbus. Eurocopter then became a fully owned part of Airbus. CASA also had a history with helicopters. They had assembled the Bo105 helicopter in Spain.

Today, Airbus Helicopters has four main factories in Europe. These are in Marignane and La Courneuve in France. They also have sites in Donauwörth and Kassel in Germany. They have 32 other offices and partners around the world. These are in places like Itajubá, Brazil, Fort Erie, Canada, and Grand Prairie, USA.

By 2014, more than 12,000 Airbus Helicopters were in use. Over 3,000 customers in about 150 countries used them. Eurocopter officially became Airbus Helicopters at the start of 2014. In December 2022, Airbus Helicopters bought a company called ZF Luftfahrttechnik. This company makes gearboxes and parts for aircraft. It was renamed Airbus Helicopters Technik. In May 2024, Airbus Helicopters made an agreement with an Indian bank. This agreement helps finance helicopter purchases in India.

Historical Emblems

Here are the different logos the company has used over the years:

• 

  1992–2000

• 

  2000–2010

• 

  2010–2014

• 

  2014–2017

• 

  2017–present

Helicopter Products

In 2015, many of the helicopters were renamed. Their new names are similar to how Airbus names its airplanes. When the company changed its name to Airbus Helicopters in 2014, the names of its products also changed. This new naming system was fully in place by January 1, 2016.

The new names no longer used suffixes. They also stopped showing if a helicopter had one or two engines. Military versions of helicopters now have the letter "M" in their name. A few helicopters kept their original names, like the AS365 and the Tiger.

Name	Type	Thumbnail	Introduced	Maximum Takeoff Weight (MTOW) in tonnes (pounds)
H125	Light single-engine		1975	2.25 t (4,960 lb)
H130	Light single-engine		2001	2.5 t (5,500 lb)
H135	Light twin-engine		1996	2.98 t (6,570 lb)
H140	Light twin-engine		2025
H145	Light twin-engine		2002	3.7 t (8,200 lb)
H155	Medium twin-engine		1999	4.92 t (10,850 lb)
H160	Medium twin-engine		2019	6.05 t (13,340 lb)
H175	Super medium twin-engine		2014	7.8 t (17,200 lb)
H215	Heavy twin-engine		1980	9.15 t (20,170 lb)
H225	Heavy twin-engine		2004	11.2 t (24,700 lb)
NH90	Military utility twin-engine		2006	10.6 t (23,400 lb)
Tiger	Military attack twin-engine		2003	6.6 t (14,600 lb)

Future Helicopter Projects

Airbus Helicopters is always working on new and exciting projects.

• X³ rotorcraft: This is a special hybrid helicopter. It has two propellers at the front. In June 2011, it reached a speed of 255 knots (about 472 km/h) in level flight.
• Airbus Helicopters X6: This was a two-year study. It looked into possibly creating an 11.5-tonne helicopter. This new helicopter would replace the H225.
• Airbus RACER: This is an experimental high-speed helicopter. It is developed from the X³. It aims to fly very fast.
• Airbus CityAirbus: This is an electric aircraft that can take off and land vertically (VTOL). It is designed to be an "air taxi" for cities.

Other Helicopter Makers

Here are some other big companies that make helicopters:

• Bell Helicopter
• Boeing Rotorcraft Systems
• Leonardo
• MD Helicopters
• Russian Helicopters
• Sikorsky Aircraft

See also

In Spanish: Airbus Helicopters para niños