Airbus Helicopters, Inc. is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its facility in Columbus, Mississippi. Since the site’s humble beginnings when it was a small leased hangar space with a total of seven employees, it has grown to today’s 330,000 sq ft production facility with a team of three hundred. The numbers are impressive: over the last 20 years, the site has delivered nearly 500 UH-72s, and over 500 H125s, carried out another 500 retrofits, 200 completions and re-engined 12 HH-65 Dauphins. Airbus said that remarkable feat is just the beginning, and the facility, which is already a completion site for H125s and 145s, will soon add H160 completions to its range following that type’s recent certification by the FAA. In addition to production, the Columbus site will continue as a completions centre working on a number of Airbus products as well as on the military side, providing continuing support of the UH-72 fleet and is set to become a production site for the AH125/MH 125 Ares programme.
To mark the milestone, a new gate guardian was unveiled in the form of an H125 in a livery designed by an employee reflecting the flags of the USA and the State of Mississippi, which Airbus said honours its commitment to the community. Pictured at the ribbon cutting are, from left to right, Bart Reijnen, CEO of Satair, Maj. Gen. Tom O’Connor, Johannes Dienemann, Vice President Airbus USA, Sen. Roger Wicker, Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, Romain Trapp, President and Head of North American for Airbus Helicopters, Inc., Maj. Gen. Trent Kelly and Robert Geckle, CEO of Airbus US Space & Defense, Inc.
