Swiss Air Force

Swiss Air Force: PW206B2 engines surpass 200,000 flight hours

Swiss Air Force for achieved 200,000 flight hours on its fleet of 45 PW206B2 engines, powering 19 Airbus H135 helicopters.

It’s not every day a helicopter operator hits 100,000 flight hours on a single helicopter type. Since 2010, when the country’s 20 H135s became fully operational, the Swiss Air Force has clocked 100,000 flight hours with the multi-mission helicopter type.

Swiss Air Force clocks 100,000 flight hours with the H135 helicopter

Air / By Defence Industry Europe

The H135 can be used in many different roles and a range of attachments (e.g. rescue winch, rope down device, load beams, and ski pads) can be fitted in a short time.

The Swiss Air Force retired the PC-9 fleet at the end of 2022. The DDPS is responsible for liquidating and selling the last three PC-9s by the end of this year. As a long-standing material competence center for the single-engine turboprops, RUAG also plays an im-portant role in the decommissioning. The capacity freed up can be offset by the maintenance, repair and overhaul of other propeller aircraft.

RUAG remains the material competence center for propeller aircraft

Air / By Defence Industry Europe

During a decade of service of the PC-9 fleet, RUAG assumed the role of material competence center on behalf of the Swiss Air Force.