Malaysia considers replacement for now retired Nuris

摘要

ACCORDING TO a report in Malaysia's New Straits Times, the government's defence ministry is considering the leasing of at least four to five helicopters as interim replacements for the Royal Malaysian Air Force's (RMAF's) Sikorsky S-61A-4 Nuris, which were grounded and subsequently retired following a crash on August 2, 2019. A number of local companies have put forward bids to lease various types, including Mil Mi-171A2s and the older Mi-171s, as well as the Leonardo AW139s, AW169s and AW189s. A decision about the type of helicopter to be leased was expected to be reached in May. A total of 43 Nuris were delivered to the RMAF in multiple batches from 1968. Prior to the grounding in 2019, 22 of them were still in service, split between the RMAF and Army Air Corps. A life-extension and avionics upgrade programme was to have been rolled out to the fleet, with one Nuri converted as proof-of-concept ⅲ 2016, but ultimately this was not carried out. The RMAF also operates a fleet of 12 Airbus Helicopters H225Ms, which were delivered between 2012 and 2013. Ultimately, more of these might be procured in the future as eventual permanent replacements for the Nuris, as had been originally planned.