Семейство вертолетов Airbus Helicopters H125/AS350 Écureuil

Single engine series of the Ecureuil light helicopter family

The Eurocopter AS350 Écureuil (or Squirrel), now Airbus Helicopters H125, is a single engine light utility helicopter originally designed and manufactured in France by Aérospatiale and Eurocopter (now Airbus Helicopters). In North America, the AS350 is marketed as the AStar. The AS355 Ecureuil 2 is a twin engine variant, marketed in North America as the TwinStar. The Eurocopter EC130 (Airbus Helicopters H130) is a derivative of the AS350 airframe and is considered by the manufacturer to be part of the Écureuil single engine family.

In the early 1970s, Aérospatiale initiated a development programme to produce a replacement for the aging Aérospatiale Alouette II. On 27 June 1974, the first prototype, an AS350C powered by a Lycoming LTS101 turboshaft engine, conducted its maiden flight at Marignane, France; the second prototype, powered by a Turbomeca Arriel 1A, following on 14 February 1975. The Arriel powered version, the AS350B, intended for sale throughout the world except for North America, was certified in France on 27 October 1977, while the Lycoming powered AS350C (or AStar) was certified by the US Federal Aviation Administration on 21 December 1977. In March 1978, deliveries to customers began for the AS350B, deliveries of the AS350C began in April 1978. Over time, the AS350 Écureuil/AStar has received further development; while the aircraft's design remains broadly similar, aspects such as the rotor system, powerplants, and avionics have been progressively improved. On 6 February 1987, a prototype AS350 flew with a fenestron tail rotor in the place of its conventional counterpart. On 1 March 1997, the first AS350 B3, equipped with an Arriel 2B engine, performed its first flight. Prior to 2013, the type had been manufactured principally at Eurocopter's Marignane facility, near Marseille, France; Eurocopter opted to, as part of a move to disperse its helicopter production activities, begin AS350 production and final assembly activities at its factory in Columbus, Mississippi, for deliveries to U. S. commercial helicopter market. The Astar has been Eurocopter's biggest selling product in the US commercial market, at one point selling roughly one AS350 every business day. In March 2015, the first Columbus assembled AS350 B3e received its FAA certification. In December 2015, Airbus Helicopters reported their intention to double the rate of AS350 production at Columbus in 2016 over the previous year, and that the facility is capable of producing up to 65 AS350s per year.

The AS350 is a single engine helicopter, powered either by a Lycoming LTS101 or Turbomeca Arriel powerplant (for twin engined variants, see Eurocopter AS355), that drives a three blade main rotor, which is furnished with a Starflex rotor head. The type is known for its high altitude performance and has seen use by operators in such environments. Much of the AS350's avionics are provided by Garmin, such as the GI 106A course deviation indicator, GNS 430 VHF/VOR/localizer/glideslope indicator/Global Positioning System receiver, GTX 327 Mode A and C transponder, and GMA 340H intercom. The Vehicle and Engine Multifunction Display (VEMD) and the First Limit Indicator (FLI) both serve to increase the aircraft's safety during flight, reducing the number of gauges that need to be monitored by the pilot and thereby reducing their workload. The AS350 has proven popular in a range of roles; multiple cabin configurations can be used, between four and six passengers in a typical seating configuration, and large sliding doors can be fitted to either side of the cabin. In some operators' fleets, the furnishings of the cabin has been designed to enable the internal space and/or equipment fit out to be rapidly reconfigured to enable aircraft to be switched between roles. Modern aircraft have refinements beyond those featuring on older models; these changes include dual channel FADEC equipped engines, increasing use of digital avionics in the cockpit, decreased maintenance costs, a re designed cabin, and a comfortable Stylence interior (optional). a record that has been confirmed by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. On 29 April 2010, a stripped down AS350 B3 rescued three Spanish alpinists, one at a time, from the slopes of Annapurna I, Nepal at an altitude of ; this set a new record for the highest such rescue. The record was increased to , during the rescue of Sudarshan Gautam between Camps III & IV in Everest's Yellow Band on the morning of 20 May 2013. On 2 June 2014, an AS350 B3e broke a national record in Mexico by successfully landing on the peak of Pico de Orizaba, at , the nation's tallest mountain. The AS350 AStar has been successful in the US market, having become the most popular helicopter platform in use with American governmental agencies, law enforcement being a typical use of the type, by 2015. By 1999, the AS350 had become the prime helicopter being used by the United States Customs Service for light enforcement operations; by 2007, the agency had become the single largest operator of the type in the world. By 2012, out of the 3,300 AS350s in operation across the world, 783 of them were in service with American based operators. In the Russian market since 2006, the AS350 and other helicopters built by the manufacturer have been sold and supported by wholly owned subsidiary Eurocopter Vostok; UTair Aviation soon emerged as the largest Russian operator of the AS350 B3e with a fleet of at least 20 of the type. In December 2014, EASA validation was issued for Airbus Helicopters China to conduct training and support activity at their facility in Shenzhen, China; various components of the AS350 (such as the main and tail gearboxes) are now maintained locally. On 9 September 2015, China's first helicopter leasing company, CM International Financial Leasing Corp Ltd (CMIFL), placed an order for 100 Ecureuil series helicopters, these are to be a mix of H125 and H130 helicopters. Brazil has been an extensive operator of the AS350; by 2011 more than 300 helicopters were operating in the country, including from the flight deck of the Brazilian aircraft carrier São Paulo. Since 1984, the Brazilian Navy has used AS350s to support the Brazilian Antarctic Program. Helibras, a wholly owned subsidiary of Eurocopter, operates in the country; of the 600 helicopters it had domestically manufactured for the Brazilian market by 2012, 70% were AS350s. In January 2011, Helibras signed a contract with the Brazilian Army to substantially upgrade and refurbish their existing fleet of 36 AS350 Ecureuils. In the United Kingdom, the Defence Helicopter Flying School operated 26 AS350, designated Squirrel HT1, for the training of pilots of Britain's armed forces; the type was introduced from 1997 onwards as a replacement for the Aérospatiale Gazelle. In September 2014, the UK's Ministry of Defence issued a request for proposals to replace the Squirrel HT1; Airbus Helicopters has already announced its intention to offer a mixed fleet of Eurocopter EC130s and Eurocopter EC135s in response. Since May 1984, the Royal Australian Navy's Fleet Air Arm has operated a fleet of AS350s, these were upgraded to the AS350 BA standard in 1995; the Royal Australian Air Force had previously operated the AS350 for training purposes, and briefly for search and rescue missions, but these were later transferred to the Australian Army. In 2017, the AS350 was retired from Australian Navy service. Between June 2007 and December 2007, the Danish Air Force operated a deployment of four AS350 helicopters at Basra International Airport, Iraq, to perform liaison and reconnaissance missions in support of coalition forces during the Iraq War. In June 2015, the Argentine Defense Ministry ordered 12 H125s to replace their 1970s era Aérospatiale SA 315B Lamas for para public support missions, such as search and rescue operations, inside Argentina. By June 2020, 3,663 H125 were operational, the largest number of any type.

The AS350 is in service around the world operated by private individuals, airline and charter operators, emergency medical teams, governments and law enforcement agencies.

Eurocopter AS350 Écureuil F WOEX at the At the Musee de l'Aviation Saint Victoret in Bouches du Rhon, France. This is the helicopter that Didier Delsalle landed on the summit of Mount Everest in May 2005

Eurocopter AS350 at the Singapore Air Force Museum.

On 14 January 1986, the AS 350 used by Dakar Rally organiser Thierry Sabine as his personal transport during the event, crashed into a sand dune in Mali. The helicopter had just taken off again after it had been forced to land in the desert by a sudden sandstorm. All five on board were killed. Among the victims were Thierry Sabine, French singer songwriter Daniel Balavoine and pilot François Xavier Bagnoud. On February 22, 1995, Massachusetts State Police helicopter N20SP carrying two troopers and two AT&T engineers crashed into the yacht club building. All on board died in the crash, which was attributed to significant operating deficiencies within the Police Air Wing which allowed contamination of the fuel bunker to go undetected. On 27 July 2007, two AS 350 AStar helicopters from television stations KNXV TV and KTVK collided in mid air over Phoenix, Arizona, while covering a police pursuit. On 15 September 2007, former World Rally Championship driver Colin McRae and three passengers were killed when his AS350 B2 Squirrel, which he was piloting, crashed near Lanark, Scotland. On 8 August 2009, a Piper PA 32R collided with an AS350 over the Hudson River, with both aircraft crashing into the Hudson River. There were no survivors. On 10 June 2012, an AS350 B3e belonging to the Kenya Police Air Wing crashed in Kibiku area in Ngong Forest, west of Nairobi, Kenya, killing at least six people, including Kenya's Interior Security Minister George Saitoti and his deputy Orwa Ojode. On March 30, 2013, an Alaska State Troopers AS350 B3 N911AA impacted terrain while maneuvering during a search and rescue flight near Talkeetna, Alaska. All 3 onboard died. On 7 June 2014, a Helibrás HB 350BA crashed after takeoff, in Aruanã, Goiás state, Brazil. All on board died, including retired football player Fernandão. On 9 March 2015, two AS350 B3 collided mid air in La Rioja Province, Argentina, killing all 10 people on board both aircraft. The passengers, including a number of French athletes, were participants in the filming of French reality television program Dropped. On 21 November 2015, an AS350BA, registration ZK HKU, crashed near Fox Glacier, New Zealand, killing all 7 people on board a tourist flight. The weather at the time was poor, with low lying cloud and snow falling near the crash site. The investigation by TAIC revealed that the pilot encountered extremely poor visibility during the descent phase of the flight causing CFIT. On 5 May 2016, an AS350 registered as RP C 6828 crashed in Sebuyau, Sarawak killing all 6 people including Malaysia Deputy Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities, Noriah Kasnon and her husband, and Member of Parliament for Kuala Kangsar, Wan Mohammad Khair il Anuar. On 11 March 2018, an AS350 N350LH operated by Liberty Helicopters carrying six people (five passengers and a pilot) crashed into New York City's East River after reportedly suffering engine failure. All five passengers were confirmed dead after the aircraft submerged upside down into the water. The pilot was able to free himself and was rescued by a nearby tugboat. On 27 February 2019, an Air Dynasty AS350 B3e helicopter crashed shortly after takeoff in Taplejung, Nepal, killing all seven people on board, including Tourism and Civil Aviation Minister Rabindra Adhikari. On 31 August 2019, an AS350 crashed in the mountains of Skoddevarre, Alta, Norway, killing all 6 occupants. In response to the accident, Airbus made crash resistant fuel systems part of the standard kit for the aircraft on 1 October. On 7 March 2021, an AS350 carrying billionaire French politician and industrialist Olivier Dassault crashed on takeoff near Deauville (Normandy) with no survivors. On 27 March 2021, an AS350 carrying Czech billionaire Petr Kellner crashed at Knik Glacier (Alaska), killing five. On 1 November 2022, an AS350 B3 operated by Midtnorsk Helikopterservice crashed just outside the centre of Verdal, Trøndelag, Norway. Two people died, and one person, the pilot, survived. On 20 December 2023, an AS350 operated by Philadelphia, PA based news channel 6abc and leased from U. S. Helicopters Inc in North Carolina crashed in the pine barrens of NJ near Wharton State Forest in Washington township. Two people died, the pilot and photographer.