[electronic translation] Bell 412 has served Norway well for 35 years. Work is now being done to ensure that they can continue to support the Norwegian Armed Forces’ special forces and the Army until new helicopters are in operation.

The government has proposed a significant strengthening of the helicopter capacity in the long-term plan. By upgrading the Bell 412, we are now ensuring helicopter readiness until the new helicopters are in place, so that the Norwegian Armed Forces will have better operational capacity during the transition period, says Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram (Sp).

The contract for upgrading has now been concluded between Defense Material and Kongsberg Aviation Maintenance Services (KAMS). This is based on an existing strategic framework agreement.

The upgrades are planned to be carried out in two phases and will cover requirements given by civil and military aviation authorities for operations in civil and military airspace respectively, as well as contribute to increasing the availability of the Bell 412.

The first phase, which has now been agreed upon, primarily deals with civil communication and navigation solutions. Phase two will take care of military communication solutions.

For the first phase, the first two upgraded helicopters are planned to be delivered before the summer of 2025. 

The subsequent upgrades will take place to the greatest extent possible when the helicopters are in for planned maintenance, to ensure the best possible operational availability.

The modifications are designed and certified in close cooperation between Forsvarsmarsmateriel, KAMS and their subcontractor Patria. These actors were gathered at Kjeller on Monday.

– We are now in the process of upgrading Bell 412 in collaboration with the industry. So far this is going according to plan, says Brigadier Jarle Nergård, head of Defense Materiel Air Capacities.

The Norwegian Defense Forces have 18 Bell 412s at Rygge and Bardufoss air stations. These constitute the Defence’s tactical helicopter transport capacity to support emergency missions on the Ridge, the Defence’s special forces and the Army.

– It is positive that the Bell 412 is being upgraded so that the Air Force has a helicopter that can be on standby and solve other tasks we are required to do. Bell 412 is an older helicopter system that must be upgraded to be relevant until new helicopter systems are acquired, says Major General Øivind Gunnerud, Commander of the Norwegian Air Force.

The helicopters were delivered from the end of the 1980s in the SP version (“special performance”). Since then, a third of the fleet has been upgraded to HP (“high performance”) with, among other things, a more powerful main gearbox.

In addition to new avionics and new instruments, in the ongoing project it may also be relevant to upgrade a few more helicopters to the HP version.

– We are proud to be given the task of upgrading the Norwegian Armed Forces’ helicopters to help increase operational availability. The agreement shows how the industry can assist with expertise and capacity and be a good strategic partner for the Air Force, where there is a need, says Andre Jægtvik, president of KAMS.

– We are happy about the opportunity to provide our expertise to the Norwegian Bell 412 upgrade programme. With the agreement, Patria will further strengthen the operational cooperation with KAMS as well as its expertise in helicopter modifications, says Mikko Kilpeläinen, Senior Vice President for Partnerships of Patria.