Airbus Helicopters H155

Airbus Helicopters H155
An H155 of the NRW police squadron
Type:	Light multipurpose helicopter
Design country:	France
Manufacturer:	Airbus Helicopters
First flight:	June 17, 1997
Commissioning:	March 1999
Production time:	In production since 1999
Number of pieces:	100 (as of August 2009)

An EC 155 of the Federal Police with a green-blue special paint

An EC 155 with searchlight in flight

The Airbus Helicopters H155 B (formerly Eurocopter EC 155 ) from the "Dauphin family" is a light multi-purpose helicopter from the Franco-German group of companies Airbus Helicopters .

development

The helicopter is a further development of the SA 365 from Sud Aviation or Aérospatiale . A special feature of the EC 155 is the relatively high top speed of 327 km / h for helicopters. Machines from the previous SA 360 series also set several world speed records.

construction

The machine has a hydraulic landing gear, but only the nose wheel is covered after the landing gear is retracted, the two main landing gear are in bays that are provided for this on the left and right in the fuselage. It has a modern glass cockpit and a transport room that can accommodate up to twelve people.

The H155 is equipped with two turbines . A Fenestron is used instead of a conventional tail rotor . This French development works like a normal tail rotor for torque compensation, but is quieter and safer in operation thanks to the design integrated into the tail boom. The newer version EC 155 B1 has, among other things, a turbine power increased by 39 kW, an increased total take-off weight and an improved flight altitude than the EC 155 B. The EC 155 is certified for instrument flight and can be flown with night vision equipment .

Range of use

The H155 can be used in the following areas:

• Air rescue
• Search and rescue service
• Offshore missions (overseas flights, for example to supply oil rigs )
• Assignments in the range of tasks of the police or comparable security organs
• Passenger transport

Users

The most frequent users of the H155 include government bodies such as the Hong Kong government or the German Federal Police . At the state police level in Germany, the police in North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Wuerttemberg have each purchased two such helicopters, primarily for the use of special task forces . Cable winches (for up to 272 kg) or abseiling aids can optionally be attached. Other main buyers are the oil drilling utilities such as DanCopter . In addition, the machine is also marketed in an eight-seat VIP version.

Technical specifications

Airbus Helicopters H155 of the German Federal Police

Parameter	Data H155 B1
Pilots	1-2
Passengers	12-13
length	14.30 m
Hull length	12.73 m
height	4.35 m
Main rotor diameter	12.60 m
Engines	two Turbomeca Arriel 2C2 turbines with 704 kW starting power each; 636 kW continuous output
Empty weight	2619 kg
Max. Takeoff weight	4920 kg
Top speed	324 km / h
Cruising speed	279 km / h
Range with standard tanks	802 km
Max. Altitude	4572 m

See also

• List of helicopter types

Web links

Commons : Airbus Helicopters H155  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Report on the rectification of defects on the doors of the EC 155 series ( Memento of September 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
• the H115 on the manufacturer's website