A further two H225M helicopters have been delivered to the Hungarian Defence Forces from the Airbus helicopters production center in France, announced Hungarian Minister of Defense Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky on Monday.
He said that the aircraft arrived at the MH Kiss József 86th Helicopter Brigade airbase in Szolnok on Monday afternoon. The new high-tech equipment will further strengthen the parachute and airborne capability of the Hungarian Air Force.
In the framework of the cooperation between the French Airbus and the Hungarian Defence Forces, the newly arrived aircraft have already increased the H225M helicopter fleet at the brigade to eight, meaning half of the total fleet of 16 H225Ms is now in Hungary, the minister added.
He recalled that the brigade received its first helicopters on July 24, 2023, and the equipment has been arriving continuously since then. In line with NATO’s expectations, Hungary has met the desired 2 percent of GDP budget level for military expenditure for the second year in a row, 20 percent of which is spent on developments by the Hungarian Defence Forces within the framework of the military development program.
“The year 2024 can also be called the year of the Air Force, as a number of new equipment and measures will focus on the air capabilities of the country’s Air Force. In the year to date, we have acquired four new Gripen aircraft, we have established a center of excellence with SAAB that also uses augmented reality (XR) technology, and pilots received a significant pay rise at the beginning of the year,” the defense minister was quoted as saying in the statement.
