Last Friday was the first flight of the H145M, which the German Army will receive as a combat helicopter. An exclusive event in Dönauwörth. Just over two weeks earlier, we were standing in a field near Calw at the 9th KSK Armament Symposium. And there it stands. No, not the helicopter for the special forces, yes, quite likely the version for the German Army. The Light Combat Helicopter (LKH) will also be delivered in five units to the special forces, but it is not the Light Utility Helicopter - Special Operations Forces (LUH - SOF), which brings operators under fire protection from the MG6 (Gatling Gun). Looking up makes us relatively certain: that is the new main rotor with short blades, five of them. The old one is different.

Before us stands H145M D3 - the latest version of the helicopter, wonderful camouflage paint, a big shark mouth and armed as if it wants to rob the cash transporter of the Calw Savings Bank on a lonely Black Forest road. And we tell you: it flew in and was gone in the evening.

For us, of course, the opportunity to look at the bird very exclusively up close. A look into the cockpit of the machine. We have more pictures of the interior, which we will not show. You don't have to show everything you have seen.

There is a rack in the rear cargo hold without seats. And the weaponry is mounted on the side of H145M D3. Including the machine gun in the pod.

And here is the same seen from the left rear side. You can also see on the new machine that Duct Tape plays its legendary role. We did not inquire about what hidden crack there.

The other side with the 70mm rocket launcher. Strongly armed, the H145M D3 - but whether we personally would consider this a combat helicopter, that could be discussed at length. The BAAINBw (Federal Office of Equipment, Information Technology and Utilization of the German Armed Forces) as the procurement agency had signed a contract with Airbus Helicopters in December 2023 for the purchase of 62 H145Ms and options for 20 more units.

The Fenestron - the enclosed tail rotor - makes the H145M a particularly quiet helicopter, ideal for the military tasks assigned to it. 57 of the helicopters ordered will go to the army aviation, including likely the first H145M flown in Donauwörth, while five will go to the air force. The H145M LKH are intended as a bridging solution to replace the combat helicopter Tiger, whose further development into the Tiger Mk III Germany no longer wanted to participate in. €2.1 billion is budgeted for the procurement of helicopters in the federal budget. ALL INFORMATION about the AIRBUS H145M.

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