Airbus Helicopters has flown the first serial production H160 to roll off the line at Marignane in southern France, the company announced on 18 December.
The event, which took place on 14 December, marked an important milestone in the development of the H160 helicopter, which was selected in 2017 to fulfil the French military’s Hélicoptère Interarmées Léger (HIL) requirement to replace most of its current rotary-winged inventory with a single type.
This first serial production H160, which is destined for launch customer Babcock, will now join three prototype helicopters in the final steps of the flight test campaign. This will include confirming that the modifications introduced onto the serial configuration have no impact on the helicopter’s handling qualities.