U.S. Coast Guard Reaches the One Million Flight Hour Milestone With its Eurocopter HH-65 Dolphin Helicopter Fleet

The U.S. Coast Guard’s fleet of Eurocopter HH-65 Dolphin helicopters has passed its onemillion flight hour milestone, marking another key operational achievement for the twinenginerotary-wing aircraft that perform patrol, law enforcement and rescue missionsthroughout the United States.

From the helicopter’s first delivery in 1985, HH-65s have become a key element of CoastGuard aviation, with 96 Dolphins currently in the service’s inventory.

Today, HH-65s operate from 17 Coast Guard Air Stations throughout the continental UnitedStates, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. It was a Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, Hawaii HH-65C helicopter that reached the one million flight hour milestone on September 20, 2007while on a maritime medical evacuation (Medivac) mission with the patient on board. TheHH-65 fleet has been assigned new mission responsibilities that include the use of armedversions for the protection of the U.S. Capital region and the interception/interdiction ofvessels at sea. Search and rescue remains one of the key duties for HH-65s, with theDolphins used extensively in lifesaving operations after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005,and routinely deployed on missions from sea level to high-altitude mountainous terrain.

“The one-million hour milestone is an impressive accomplishment, which takes on addedsignificance considering the environment in which the Coast Guard’s fleet operates and thevaried types of mission performed by these aircraft,” said American Eurocopter PresidentMarc Paganini. “All of us at American Eurocopter are proud to be part of this achievement,and we look forward to continuing our relationship with the Coast Guard in supporting, andfurther improving, the HH-65.

”The US Coast Guards are one of our most important and emblematic customers. Their onemillionflight hour milestone is an extremely symbolic achievement,” adds Dr. Lutz Bertling,CEO of Eurocopter Group. “At Eurocopter, we endeavor to provide the best highperformancehelicopters to all our Coast Guard customers together with a fully dedicatedcustomer support in order to allow them to carry out their public service missions efficientlyand in the utmost security.

”In the US, all the Coast Guard Dolphins have completed a conversion to the HH-65Cversion, which incorporated engine and system upgrades to provide even more power,greater maneuverability and increased safety margins. The upgrade was performed at theU.S. Coast Guard’s Aircraft Repair

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