Airbus Helicopters Ec155

Twin Rotorcraft

The Airbus Helicopters EC155 is a twin-engine medium utility helicopter that emerged in the late 1990s as a stretched, more powerful evolution of the AS365 Dauphin family. Certified in 1997 and entering service in 1999, the EC155 was designed to bridge the gap between light twins and heavy-lift helicopters, offering a spacious cabin that seats up to 13 passengers while maintaining the speed and range advantages of its Dauphin lineage. Its twin Turbomeca Arriel 2C turboshaft engines and five-blade Spheriflex rotor head deliver a maximum cruise speed around 165 knots and a range exceeding 400 nautical miles, making it particularly well-suited for offshore oil platform transport, VIP corporate shuttle, and emergency medical services. The type found a strong niche in the North American air medical market, where its large cabin volume allows full stand-up medical configurations and its twin-engine redundancy meets stringent safety requirements for instrument flight over populated areas. The EC155's Fenestron shrouded tail rotor reduces noise and improves safety around ground personnel, a feature inherited from the Dauphin but refined for the larger airframe. While production ended in 2022 as Airbus shifted focus to the newer H160, the EC155 remains in active service worldwide with operators valuing its blend of cabin space, speed, and hot-and-high performance. The EC155 never-exceed speed of 175 knots and maximum takeoff weight of 10,692 pounds position it firmly in the medium-twin category, competing historically with the Sikorsky S-76 and AgustaWestland AW139. Its relatively high disk loading and streamlined fuselage give it a speed advantage over many competitors, though at the cost of slightly higher fuel consumption. SkyMeter has tracked 39 flights across 17 airframes and 6 operators, with MILTON S HERSHEY MEDICAL CENTER the largest observed operator.