Working the fires in Victoria currently is the Shadowcat, VH-KSI. Flying as Helitak 349.

Kestrel's Puma, VH-KSI has been into the paint shop and has had some new additions bolted to the airframe so it can now work in the night fire fighting role. Also fitted is the SImplex 316 belly tank for urban interface firefighting.

This was a final testing day we conducted before the Puma or Firecat, when on contract. Here it is lifting up after loading its Bambi bucket.

Taxing out for a flight to Zwickau (Saxony), using callsign "BPO510". The predecessor of the "Bundespolizei" (till 2005 called "Bundesgrenzschutz") had already operated 23 SA-330 Puma's between 1973 and 2008. The first two AS-332 Super Pumas entered service in 1988, but it was only as from 2004 that 11 more Aérospatiale built AS-332L1's joined the fleet. Those were all 2nd hand mainly sourced from british offshore operators. Further, seven new Eurocopter built L1's (incl. D-HEGW) were introduced as from 2008 and finally, four Airbus H215 were added in 2019, bringing the total SP number to 24.

Sold in the US as N5893Y in April 2017.

Besides a large fleet of AS-350's, the LA County Sheriff Department (LASD) also operates three AS-332L1 Super Pumas. In addition to supporting law enforcement duties, those helicopters are sometimes also called for rescue missions. Unfortunately, N950SG crashed during one of those on March 19, 2022 near San Gabriel Dam (CA), luckily without loss of life. N950SG, like the LASD's other two AS332s, has been remanufactured in 2004, hence it's c/n in the 9000 range. It joined the LASD in 2013, having previously been N212AE. The AS332's replaced the LASD famous Sikorsky SH-3D Sea King.

Joint Warrior 2013-1 movement.

ex F-WQED

Clearing the deck again after what seemed to be an engine test run. The -OLR would go in the most right part hangar, the other helicopter (LN-OMX) is getting pushed back inside its part of the hangar. In the background you can see the ocean and a sightseeing boat. The "Sysselmannen" titles refer to the Governor of Svalbard.

From EH " Parisis" Helicopter Squadron.

Those high-vis panels really are effective - I didn't do anything in the file manipulation to enhance them.

Delivered to the German federal police on 18 September 2008. Seen towing a bucket.