Ejercito del Aire, February 28, 2023 - The NH90 helicopter fleet of the Spanish Air and Space Force has completed 2,000 flight hours after just over 2 years of operation since the arrival of the first aicraft in October 2020.
Over the course of this period, the 6 aircraft that have been progressively delivered to Ala 48 (48th Wing), the unit in charge of its top-level operation and maintenance, have gone through an initial maturation phase, transition of personnel from the previous weapons system (AS332 Super Puma) certification in the roles of Search and Rescue (SAR), recovery of personnel and special operations.
The implementation of a weapons system is, in itself, an enormous challenge due to the structural modifications that this entails and, nevertheless, that of the HD.29 (military nomenclature for the helicopter) has been a complete success due to the excellent operability achieved and for the fulfillment of all the objectives established by the Chief of the Air Staff and his Air Combat Command.
The men and women that make up the 48th Wing are responsible for this achievement, highlighting, in particular, the personnel of their materiel group, who have managed to lead the Spanish Air Force and Space Force to be the NH90 user with the highest operability of the world, and the crew members of the 803 Squadron, who have developed doctrine and operated the aircraft, day and night, with efficiency and safety.
This milestone coincides with the entry into scheduled 600-hour maintenance of the first NH90 received, which is being carried out by the Maestranza Aérea de Madrid (MAESMA), and which highlights the outstanding coordination between the CAMO (Airworthiness Management Organization) of the Logistics Support Command, 48th Wing and MAESMA, in order to maximize the availability of helicopters during their operational life.
The representation of this effort is the operational availability, to this day, of the other five 'Wolves', which are available to NATO as the special operations Rapid Reaction Force (NRF) during 2023 for immediate deployment.
In this way, the 24/7 Air Search and Rescue (SAR) alert is covered for most of the peninsula and, during these weeks, alternative deployments and training in special operations maneuvers are held between Zaragoza and Murcia.
Over the course of this period, the 6 aircraft that have been progressively delivered to Ala 48 (48th Wing), the unit in charge of its top-level operation and maintenance, have gone through an initial maturation phase, transition of personnel from the previous weapons system (AS332 Super Puma) certification in the roles of Search and Rescue (SAR), recovery of personnel and special operations.
The implementation of a weapons system is, in itself, an enormous challenge due to the structural modifications that this entails and, nevertheless, that of the HD.29 (military nomenclature for the helicopter) has been a complete success due to the excellent operability achieved and for the fulfillment of all the objectives established by the Chief of the Air Staff and his Air Combat Command.
The men and women that make up the 48th Wing are responsible for this achievement, highlighting, in particular, the personnel of their materiel group, who have managed to lead the Spanish Air Force and Space Force to be the NH90 user with the highest operability of the world, and the crew members of the 803 Squadron, who have developed doctrine and operated the aircraft, day and night, with efficiency and safety.
This milestone coincides with the entry into scheduled 600-hour maintenance of the first NH90 received, which is being carried out by the Maestranza Aérea de Madrid (MAESMA), and which highlights the outstanding coordination between the CAMO (Airworthiness Management Organization) of the Logistics Support Command, 48th Wing and MAESMA, in order to maximize the availability of helicopters during their operational life.
The representation of this effort is the operational availability, to this day, of the other five 'Wolves', which are available to NATO as the special operations Rapid Reaction Force (NRF) during 2023 for immediate deployment.
In this way, the 24/7 Air Search and Rescue (SAR) alert is covered for most of the peninsula and, during these weeks, alternative deployments and training in special operations maneuvers are held between Zaragoza and Murcia.
Cuatro Vientos See also |
NH90 Lobo in
Ejercito del Aire Escuadron 803 Ejercito del Aire Spanish Air Force 
