In October the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) commissioned the second of two Airbus H145 helicopters ordered in September 2018, just four months after the official commissioning of its first H145.
The Philippine parapublic agency became the first coast guard organisation in the world to operate the multi-purpose H145.
The new four-tonne-class twin-engine helicopters are specially equipped with weather radar, bambi bucket, emergency floatation gear, as well as an external loudspeaker, to perform critical missions such as search and rescue, maritime patrol, law enforcement and fire-fighting.
“Having led numerous operations in the country for many years, we are very happy to be the first in the Philippines to introduce the H145 for parapublic missions,” said Captain Philipps Y.Soria, commander of Coast Guard Aviation Force at the agency’s 119th anniversary celebrations where the second H145 was commissioned.
“Our work is ever-evolving, and we need an aircraft that can keep up with a wide range of requirements.”
“PCG and Airbus go a long way back since the agency’s first BO105 in 1975. We are delighted that the coast guard has chosen the H145 to strengthen their parapublic fleet. The first H145 helicopter already operated by the coast guard, has proven itself and had taken on numerous humanitarian missions, including the delivery of personal protection equipment (PPE) and essential supplies to frontliners in the Coast Guard District in Negros Occidental, a province located in the Southern Visayas, earlier in March in the fight against COVID-19. We are also happy to know that this second H145 has undertaken its first surveillance mission recently,” said Lionel de Maupeou, managing director of Airbus Helicopters Philippines.
by David Oliver
