Airbus Helicopters late last week delivered the first of 100 H135 light-twin helicopters to Health Commission of Qingdao in China’s Shandong Province. The deal was secured via a framework agreement signed in June 2016 between the two entities.
Like those that will follow over the coming years, the H135 was delivered fully equipped with the latest medical interior, allowing it to perform EMS missions in Qingdao and the surrounding area. Notably, it is the first H135 to be delivered to China with Airbus’s latest-generation Helionix avionics suite.
The first five H135s of the order, including the one handed over last week, are being assembled at Airbus’s facility in Donauwörth, Germany, where Chinese final assembly line employees have been receiving training from their German counterparts since April. The remaining 95 helicopters will be assembled at a facility in Qingdao that is slated to be completed by the end of this year. Final assembly of H135s will start next year in China.
Airbus Helicopters is currently the leader in the Chinese civil and parapublic helicopter market, with some 280 Airbus helicopters flying in China serving 75 customers. Rotorcraft needs in China have experienced annual growth of 20 percent in recent years, according to Airbus.