French operator Airtelis, with the support of Nova Capital Group, has signed a contract with Airbus Helicopters for the purchase of three H215 heavy helicopters, including two options. These aircraft will complement the company's existing fleet of two H225s. The first delivery was scheduled for October. A variant of the Super Puma family, the H215 will be equipped for aerial work operations in support of Airtelis' power line construction and maintenance missions.

“We are pleased to be adding a new member of the Super Puma family to our fleet,” comments CEO Stephane Delaye. “The aircraft's load capacity, cost-effectiveness and 'one engine inoperative' performance are ideal for the highly technical aerial work missions that we perform.”

Airtelis carries out maintenance work on high voltage power lines and performs load transportation, structure assembly, repair and maintenance. It has more than 60 years of experience flying utility helicopters.

The acquisition will be financed by Airtelis through a sale and leaseback transaction with Nova Capital acting as exclusive operating lessor. “We are delighted to support the company's exceptional recent growth and to introduce this versatile and highly efficient asset to our portfolio,” says Nova CEO Olivier Piot.

The twin engine H215 has a baseline configuration optimised for aerial work missions, has Makila1A1 engines and the latest generation flight management system installed.

A glass cockpit avionics system and four-axis autopilot have been imported from the H225 and are designed to provide flight envelope protection, precision and automatic hover stability in harsh conditions.