Mexican Navy receives 2 Panther Helicopters
In a ceremony at Marignane, Eurocopter officially handed over the keys of two Panther helicopters to Commander General and Staff College Graduate (CG. DEM) Admiral Armando S nchez Moreno, who is Under Secretary of the Mexican Navy. The helicopters will be operated by the Navy of the United Mexican States.
Marignane, 30 June 2005
The delivery followed up the contract, which was signed in 2003 and included an option for 8 more helicopters.
The contract has strengthened the 25-year long cooperation between the Mexican Navy and Eurocopter.
The Panthers are powered by 2 Turbomeca Arriel 2C engines, each developing 879 hp. They will operate off ships and perform missions for the Coast Guard, as well as SAR, surveillance and drug enforcement operations and troop transport.
The helicopters are a component in the strategic plan to modernize the navy, which is playing an increasingly important role in national security activities.
EUROCOPTER entered the program at the outset. The program was kicked off in 2002 after a contract was signed for upgrading the fleet of BO 105s, used by the Mexican navy for surveillance and interdiction duties.
The first helicopters upgraded in Mexico are already operational.
The Panther is a recognized benchmark for military helicopters in the 5 metric ton category. In all, 259 Panthers have been sold, including 78 naval versions.
On the American continent, the 36 acquired by the Brazilian army are all operational today. As for the Dauphin - the civil version of the Panther - more 490 have been sold to date. The US Coast Guard operates 96 of these helicopters, which have chalked up an impressive total of 750,000 flight hours.
And that's not all as the Korean Maritime Police, Royal Moroccan Navy, Greek Harbor Police and Spanish Coast Guard Administration have also chosen the Panther/Dauphin.
Eurocopter is a wholly-owned subsidiary of EADS. EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services. In 2004, EADS generated revenues of €31.8 billion and employed a workforce of about 110,000. The EADS Group includes the aircraft manufacturer Airbus, the world's largest helicopter supplier Eurocopter and the joint venture MBDA, the international leader in missile systems. EADS is the major partner in the Eurofighter consortium, is the prime contractor for the Ariane launcher, develops the A400M military transport aircraft and is the largest industrial partner for the European satellite navigation system Galileo.
For further information, please contact:
| Jean-Louis ESPES | Eurocopter |
Tel.: + 33 (0) 4 42 85 95 55 Fax: + 33 (0) 4 42 85 95 64 mailto: jean-louis.espes@eurocopter.com |
| Christina GOTZHEIN | Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH |
Tel.: + 49 (0) 89 60 00 64 88 Fax: + 49 (0) 89 60 00 44 37 mailto: christina.gotzhein@eurocopter.com |
| Jesus RUIZ | Eurocopter España, S.A. |
Tel.: + 34 91 511 04 70 Fax: + 34 91 511 04 69 mailto: jesus.ruiz@eurocopter.es |
| www.eurocopter.com |
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