“Medium-Weight” Helicopter: Everything You Need to Know About Airbus H160M Guépard

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France continues flight testing of the Airbus H160M Guépard, its next-generation multirole military helicopter. On July 31, the program reached another milestone as the second prototype completed its maiden flight. The first prototype has been in the air since July 24, 2025. The H160M is being developed for the French Armed Forces under the HIL (Hélicoptère Interarmées Léger, or Joint Light Helicopter) program. The initiative is a notable example of an “off-the-shelf” procurement approach, in which an existing commercial aircraft is adapted for military use. In this case, the Guépard is based on the civilian Airbus H160, with extensive modifications to meet the operational requirements of France’s armed services.

Design Features

The H160 occupies what could best be described as a “medium-light” category. Four or five decades ago, it would almost certainly have been classified as a medium helicopter, but by today’s standards it falls within the light helicopter segment. Its development traces back to the X4 research program launched in 2011.

Within Airbus’ product lineup, the H160 was designed to replace the aging SA365 Dauphin family and its later derivative, the EC155. In the commercial market, it was positioned as a direct competitor to – and potential “AW139 killer” – the highly successful AgustaWestland AW139 (now produced by Leonardo), one of the dominant aircraft in the medium twin-engine helicopter class. Airbus originally targeted a broad customer base for the H160, including offshore operators supporting oil and gas platforms and their service vessels, law enforcement agencies, corporate and VIP operators, military customers, and emergency medical services.

The H160 incorporates a number of design features that were introduced to an Airbus helicopter for the first time. These include the new Speriflex bearingless main rotor head and a five-blade main rotor whose performance is enhanced by Blue Edge rotor blades and a biplane horizontal stabilizer. Together, these innovations increase the helicopter’s payload by approximately 100 kg while significantly reducing external noise. The twin-plane stabilizer also improves handling and stability during low-speed flight.

The civilian H160 is equipped with Helionix, Airbus’ integrated avionics suite. Another distinctive feature is its retractable landing gear, which reduces aerodynamic drag and improves fuel efficiency in cruise flight. Unlike the conventional hydraulic systems commonly used for landing gear retraction, the H160 employs an electrically actuated system.

The H160 features a Fenestron enclosed tail rotor, a hallmark of several previous Airbus helicopter designs. With a diameter of 1.2 meters, it was the largest Fenestron rotor ever fitted to an Airbus helicopter at the time of the H160’s introduction. The tail rotor is installed at an angle relative to the horizontal plane, allowing it to generate a small amount of additional lift in addition to providing anti-torque control.

Airbus initially planned to equip the H160 with a full fly-by-wire flight control system. However, the concept was ultimately abandoned after potential customers showed limited interest, while the anticipated weight savings proved too small to justify the added complexity and development costs.

The H160 is powered by two Safran Arrano 1A turboshaft engines, each producing 1,280 hp. It has a maximum takeoff weight of 6,050 kg, a payload capacity of 2,000 kg, and can accommodate up to 14 occupants, including one or two pilots. The helicopter carries up to 1,120 kg of fuel, providing an endurance of approximately 4.5 hours, while its cruising speed is 255 km/h.

The first prototype of the civilian H160 made its maiden flight on June 12, 2015. The helicopter received its type certification on July 1, 2020, and entered commercial service in 2021, where it is now operated by a number of civilian customers.

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For the French Armed Forces

In March 2017, the militarized H160M Guépard was selected for France’s HIL (Joint Light Helicopter) program. The initiative called for the procurement of 160–190 helicopters of a single type to replace approximately 420 aging aircraft across the French Armed Forces. These include the Gazelle, Puma, and Fennec in Army Aviation; the Puma and Fennec in the Air and Space Force; and the Alouette III, Dauphin, and Panther in the French Navy.

A framework contract was signed in December 2021, providing for the acquisition of 169 H160M helicopters: 80 for the French Army, 49 for the Navy, and 40 for the Air and Space Force. Compared with the civilian H160, the military variant features a redesigned nose section to accommodate electro-optical sensor systems. Other modifications include engine air intake filters, upward-facing exhausts fitted with infrared suppressors, a wire strike protection cutter mounted above the cockpit, and reinforced landing gear. The helicopter is also equipped to carry external sling loads beneath the fuselage. The naval version will receive additional corrosion protection, along with a deck landing assistance system and a harpoon securing device that locks the helicopter to the deck grid during shipboard operations.

The H160M will be equipped with the FlytX avionics suite developed by Thales. The system is based on the company’s earlier Avionics 2020 architecture, first unveiled in 2013. The French Ministry of the Armed Forces became the launch customer for the FlytX platform. Pilots of the military variant will operate the helicopter using three large multifunction color touchscreen displays.

All military variants share a common suite of self-protection and communications systems. Regardless of service branch, the helicopters can be equipped with external weapons mounted on dedicated hardpoints. The available armament includes MBDA ANL (Anti-Navire Léger) lightweight anti-ship missiles, FN HMP400 gun pods armed with 12.7 mm FN M3P machine guns and 400 rounds of ammunition, 12-round launchers for 70 mm rockets – both unguided and laser-guided – as well as 7.62 mm MAG58 machine guns mounted in the fuselage side windows.

The H160M features a modular design that allows the helicopter to be rapidly reconfigured for different mission profiles. Equipment and mission systems can be replaced quickly to meet changing operational requirements. In addition to the traditional roles of light military helicopters – including search and rescue, personnel and cargo transport, and medical evacuation – the naval variant is designed to engage small surface vessels, while the Air and Space Force version will also be tasked with counter-uncrewed aerial system (C-UAS) operations.

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Program Progress and Interim Solutions

The HIL program has experienced significant delays caused by a combination of factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic. The original schedule called for the H160M prototype to begin flight testing in 2023, with deliveries to the French Armed Forces starting in 2026. In practice, however, the first of the three planned prototypes – two flying aircraft and one for ground-based structural testing – did not begin flight trials until two years later.

As a result, deliveries of the first production-standard H160Ms are now expected to begin no earlier than 2028. So far, the French Ministry of the Armed Forces has placed an initial order for 30 helicopters: 21 for the French Army, eight for the Navy, and one for the Air and Space Force.

Delays to the H160M program forced the French authorities to adopt interim solutions. The French Navy, which faced the most urgent replacement requirement following the retirement of its Alouette III helicopters, leased six civilian H160s in 2022 as a temporary measure. Their primary role is search and rescue operations.

France’s National Gendarmerie also opted for the civilian H160, placing an order for ten helicopters in 2021. The first aircraft was delivered in December 2025, with the remaining deliveries scheduled to be completed by 2027.

The program has also demonstrated that adapting a civilian helicopter to meet military requirements is far from straightforward. The prolonged development of the H160M Guépard has undoubtedly affected its export prospects, and to date no customer outside France has placed an order for the aircraft. Airbus’ ambition to challenge the widely adopted AW139 has proven particularly difficult to achieve, at least in the military market.

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