Airbus Helicopters North America maintained its position as the leading provider of helicopters in the region in 2019, completing 61 deliveries to its growing customer base for a market share of 64%. The company also took in 66 gross orders in the U.S. and Canada.

Key deliveries include the first U.S. produced EC145e to Metro Aviation, who currently has a total of 43 of the model on order and the first three of nine H145 aircraft to non-profit air ambulance provider STARS operating in Western Canada.

The H125 continues to be a best seller in the region, leading the market particularly for airborne law enforcement and utility operations – especially in hot and high environments. Airbus announced last month a power increase on the H125, increasing its useful load by 308 lbs (140 kg), news that increases the performance scope of H125, especially for firefighting missions.

The company has also delivered more than 454 UH-72A helicopters out of its production facility in Columbus, Miss. to train U.S. Army and Navy pilots.

Continuing its commitment to customer support, Airbus Helicopters added a total of 78 aircraft in North America to the fleet covered by HCare support contracts.

“North American is a very mature market, and we are seeing strong results from 2019 thanks to a special emphasis on the customer experience, and thanks to our balanced portfolio of civil/military and product/services,” said Romain Trapp, president of Airbus Helicopters, Inc. and head of the North American region. “We also continue to bring new customers to the overall helicopter market- almost 35% of our commercial bookings in the last three years are with new customers.”

Airbus Helicopters’ commitment to continuous product improvement for customer added-value and mission success is illustrated by the H125 power increase and some key product milestones in store for 2020.

The first delivery worldwide of the H160 is taking place in North America later this year. The soon-to-be-certified H160 delivers competitiveness thanks to its increased fuel efficiency and customer-centric simplified maintenance eco-system, and will also bring an array of breakthrough safety features with Helionix’s accrued pilot assistance and automated features as well as flight envelop protection. The highly-anticipated new five-bladed H145 helicopter is also set to receive FAA certification this year.