Germany to invest in Airbus civilian helicopter and refit it for combat – Company Insider

BERLIN, March 18 (Reuters) – Germany’s defense ministry desires to invest in 82 civilian Airbus ( AIR.PA ) H-145M helicopters and convert some of them into combat helicopters to replace its Tiger fighter fleet, Company Insider reported, citing to internal military documents.

Germany changed its defense policy final year soon after Russia invaded Ukraine, investing one hundred billion euros ($107 billion) to modernize the Bundeswehr, Germany’s armed forces.

Berlin, reluctant to invest in an upgrade to Airbus’ Tiger attack helicopter since of operational challenges, desires to invest in 82 of the planes for three.05 billion euros ($three.three billion) and arm 24 with anti-tank missiles, according to the German news agency. mentioned.

The Defense Ministry was not right away accessible for comment.

The H-145M helicopters are authorized for military use but are not developed as combat aircraft and the Bundeswehr has issues about the machine’s combat suitability and crew protection, which the ministry has so far ignored, the report added.

The Bundeswehr considers the planned acquire “a purely political choice that ignores operational requirements,” Company Insider mentioned, citing a letter from the German Armed Forces Technical Service for Aircraft and Aviation Gear (VTD 61) to the Defense Ministry.

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Reporting by Riham Alkousa Editing by David Holmes

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