Air Force receives Airbus H-145 M helicopters?

Minister of Defense Dragan Krapović said that the construction of two new patrol ships, which are being built for the needs of the Navy of the Republic of Montenegro by the French shipyard Kership in Concarneau, is proceeding faster than planned. He announced that the first of the two OPV-60M ships will be ceremonially launched in September, and delivered to the Navy of the Republic of Montenegro in the spring of next year.

"You know very well and are well versed, because you have been following this topic for a long time, how complex it is to introduce such a new asset and combat platform into operational use, and what is needed for that. On our part, it will be a truly enormous effort, but what I have to say is that our French partners Kership and Naval Group have really done a very, very high-quality job so far. We have encountered very good cooperation and as a result of those two facts, I would say that we are perhaps even a little ahead of schedule, when it comes to patrol ships," Krapović told "Vijesti".

He said that the launching of the first of the two new ships in France will take place in September and that the ceremony will be attended by officials from the two countries, including the Deputy Prime Minister of the Montenegrin Government Aleksa Bečić, the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Montenegro, Brigadier General Miodrag Vuksanović, and the Minister of Defense Krapović himself.

He pointed out that the first of the two ordered ships will be in Montenegro in the spring of next year, most likely in April or May, and a few months after that, the second such ship will be put into operational use by the MVCG.

The so-called OPV-60M type offshore patrol vessels ordered by the Montenegrin Navy from Kership are 58,2 meters long and have a displacement of just over 550 tons, with a maximum speed of 22 knots, an autonomy of 21 days at sea and a range of 4.500 miles. The ships are designed for a wide range of tasks, including the surveillance of territorial waters, the fight against smuggling and illegal migration, as well as participation in international missions within NATO. They will be armed with one 40 mm cannon and two remotely controlled combat stations with 12,7 mm machine guns, and their 'Polaris' combat-operational system allows the ship to be subsequently armed with missile and anti-submarine weapons, which greatly increases its combat capability in case of war. The modular construction principle of these ships gives them great flexibility and potential for future possible upgrades and equipping with additional weapons and equipment during the vessels’ expected lifespan of 30+ years. The new patrol ships, worth more than 120 million euros, have already been given the names “Petar I Njegoš” and “Petar II Njegoš”.

The Minister of Defense believes that the acquisition of these two ships and what has been done in the past few years in terms of equipping the Navy has made "a quantum leap for Montenegro as a maritime state and especially for the armed forces and the Navy."

"A new building for the Navy Command with an Operations Center has been built and equipped, observation stations on the coast have been modernized, four new fast patrol boats for rapid response have been put into use, and next year these two new patrol ships will arrive. I would say that this is truly a well-rounded system that will respond to all needs, not only in the military but also in the civilian domain when it comes to duration and rescue, when it comes to possible sea pollution and environmental protection. And of course, especially when it comes to organized crime at sea, illegal migration, drug trafficking, excise goods, etc. So, all in all, I am very, very satisfied that within one mandate, we have jointly managed to complete such a project and I would say that it will have the full effect of what was intended," Krapović underlined.

Referring to the intensification of cooperation between Montenegrin state institutions and Airbus Helicopters, which was recently announced by Prime Minister Milojko Spajić during the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to Montenegro, Krapović said that as Minister of Defense, he will sign a Government-to-Government agreement with Boris Pistorius, Minister of Defense of Germany, in Berlin on Friday, June 12.

"This will be the basis to move forward with some possible procurements. Certainly, the procurement of helicopters and the modernization of the helicopter unit within the Air Force of the Army of Montenegro is one of the priorities. The Airbus H-145M platform is something that is in the focus of our thoughts in that direction. It is still not fully crystallized, but it is certain enough that the Prime Minister could have said something like that at that moment," the Minister of Defense emphasized.

Airbus's multi-purpose helicopter type H-145M is designed to transport up to ten people and in the combat version is used for air fire support, observation and reconnaissance of the terrain, as well as for landing special forces. The helicopter is equipped with the latest generation optoelectronic and attack-navigation systems that enable it to perform tasks in all weather conditions, day and night. This twin-engine helicopter reaches a maximum speed of 278 kilometers per hour, the maximum operational flight altitude is 6.000 meters, the range is 630 kilometers, and the payload is 3.800 kilograms. Several countries, including the USA, have H-145M helicopters in their armies, and in the neighborhood it is used by the Serbian Army.

Krapović said that the performance of the Bell-412EPI helicopters currently used by the Montenegrin Air Force is "really good and satisfactory" for the needs of the Montenegrin Armed Forces, as well as their use in support missions for civil services, especially in aerial firefighting. However, he stressed that it is unacceptable that during their procurement in 2018, an adequate system of service and support for spare parts from the suppliers from whom the helicopters were purchased was not created, which was demonstrated when one of these aircraft, after a technical failure, was out of operational use for almost a year, until the repair was completed.

"A year and a half is too long. This is no longer the time when we can think in this way and complete tasks that have not been fully monitored and completed in terms of logistics, in terms of the parts supply chain, in terms of overhaul and everything else. Therefore, we will strive in this direction so that when it comes to the logistics segment, when it comes to Vazduhoplost and when it comes to Monarica, all projects are strategically completed in their entirety, including this project that we are mentioning with the Germans and Airbus," he concluded.