Indonesia’s Lion Group – known primarily under its Lion Air airline operation – is to receive an Airbus EC135P2e twin helicopter in the near future. The blue helicopter, seen this week test flying out of the Augsburg completion centre, carries the red “Lion Group” logo on each side – as reported by Helionline.de. It would appear to be a VIP helicopter for the Lion Group board, which is headed by founder Rusdi Kirana.

Lion Group are massive customers of Airbus Group airliners. In November 2014 they signed a $1 Billion deal for a further 40 ATR72-600 turboprops to take their ATR fleet to 100. They have three subsidiary airlines operating ATRs – Wings Air, Maldindo Air and Thai Lion Air. Just two weeks previously, Airbus was celebrating the delivery of the first three A320 airliners to the group from an order for no fewer than 234 A320 family airliners – that order placed in March 2013 comprised 109 A320neo, 65 A321neo and 60 A320ceo, and was finalised at a special ceremony at the Elysée Palace in Paris in the presence of President François Hollande.

Airbus Helicopters renamed the EC135T3/P3 to “H135”, but the subject aircraft is a P2e model by virtue of the P&WC sticker on the engine cover and the stabiliser end-plates.

John Burcote – HeliHub.com

File photo