14:05 GMT, March 2, 2009 Marignane | On Friday, the Japanese Ministry of Defence signed a contract for 2 EC135 helicopters with Euroheli (Eurocopter’s distributor in Japan). As defpro.daily reported (http://www.defpro.com/daily/details/222/) the decision was felt January 2009.

A second contract for 3 additional helicopters will follow next year with the objective of attaining a fleet of 15 training aircraft in total for the Maritime Self-Defence Forces.

This signature took place after a thorough and rigorous selection which not only took into account the technological performance of the aircraft but also its life-cycle cost.

To be delivered before the end of this year, the EC135 helicopters are destined for the Naval Training School of Kanoya located on the island of Kyushu.

Mr. Lutz Bertling, Eurocopter’s CEO stated on this occasion, “We are extremely proud that our helicopters have been chosen by the Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Forces. This clearly shows the Japanese Navy’s confidence in our products. Like we announced at Japan Aerospace in Yokohama last year, we are determined to gain a foothold in the defence market in Japan. This contract award clearly brings us a step closer to achieving this goal and we remain committed to serving the needs of the Japanese Self-Defence Forces with our wide range of products, especially with the NH90* helicopter”.

Tailored for advanced training missions, the EC135 is well adapted for air crew from defence forces operating new generation multi-role or combat helicopters, such as Japan. In Europe, countries such as Germany, Spain and Switzerland are already using the EC135 or its military version the EC635 for the training of their pilots.

This new fleet of EC135 training helicopters will add to the 3 EC225 VIP helicopters (which entered into operation mid last year) currently flying for the Japanese Self-Defence Forces.
With 57% market share in the civil and parapublic sectors, a fleet of 360 helicopters and more than 40 years of presence, Eurocopter is well-positioned in Japan to provide on-site maintenance and logistics services through the presence of its subsidiary Eurocopter Japan and its distributor EuroHeli.

Training is made easy on the EC135 helicopter
The EC135 is a modern light twin-engine helicopter in the 3 ton class with a seating capacity of 7 – 8 passengers and doted with a good manoeuvrability, high visibility and low vibration level. Equipped with a glass cockpit and the most advanced technologies, the EC135 allows instructors to perform training missions in optimal safety conditions. It is also simple to maintain and has a low fuel consumption level, which reduces operating ad overall training costs.

12 years after making its debut in the market in mid-1996, more than 800 EC135 helicopters have been delivered worldwide for a variety of missions ranging from pilot training, law enforcement to Emergency Medical Services (EMS)/Search and Rescue (SAR). In Japan there are currently 40 EC135s flying for EMS missions (better known as Doctor Heli), news gathering and corporate transport operations.
*The NH90 is a helicopter in the 9-10 metric ton class intended to modernise and boost the capability of the tactical transport and anti-submarine combat fleets. It is developed by NHI - joint venture established between Eurocopter, Agusta Westland and Stork Fokker.

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See also:

A shift towards Europe? - Japan to buy Eurocopter military training helicopters
http://www.defpro.com/daily/details/222/