LAPD Re-ups with Airbus Helicopters

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) is adding four new Airbus Helicopters H125s to its fleet as part of an overall multi-year modernization plan to replace its fleet of 12 AS350B2s. Two H125s are currently undergoing completion and two more are scheduled for delivery in the second quarter of this year.

LAPD began air support with one helicopter in 1956 and is currently the largest municipal airborne law enforcement operation in the world, employing 75 officer-pilots and tactical officers, operating 17 helicopters and one fixed-wing aircraft and flying 17,000 hours per year. It purchased its first AS350B1 in 1988. Airbus produces the H125 in Columbus, Mississippi, and in Marignane, France. At Heli-Expo, Airbus is displaying several helicopters and featuring a virtual reality experience in its booth that demonstrates the technology of the new H160 medium twin that is currently under development.