IAR 330
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The IAR 330 is a
licence-built Licensed production is the production under license of technology developed elsewhere. The licensee provides the licensor of a specific product with legal production rights, technical information, process technology, and any other proprietary compo ...
version of the
Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma The Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma is a four-bladed, twin-engined medium transport/utility helicopter that was designed and originally produced by the French aerospace manufacturer Sud Aviation. It is capable of carrying up to 20 passengers as well as ...
helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...
, manufactured by the
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
n aerospace manufacturer
IAR Brașov IAR may refer to: * IAR Systems, an embedded system technology company *The Institute of Asian Research, an institute under the Faculty of Arts in the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada *" Ignore all rules", a policy on Wikipedia ...
. The IAR 330 was produced under a licensing agreement with the French aerospace firm Aérospatiale, signed on 30 July 1974. On 22 October 1975, the first Romanian-built Puma conducted its
maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. The maiden flight of a new aircraft type is alw ...
. Deliveries to customers begun shortly thereafter; by 1980, around 25 IAR 330s had been produced for both domestic and overseas customers. Various oversea countries opted to procure the IAR 330, including
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
, Ivory Coast,
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...
, and Sudan. The largest operator of the type would be the
Romanian Air Force The Romanian Air Force (RoAF) ( ro, Forțele Aeriene Române) is the air force branch of the Romanian Armed Forces. It has an air force headquarters, an operational command, five airbases and an air defense brigade. Reserve forces include one ai ...
, who initially used it primarily as a utility transport. During the 1990s, there was a desire for a rotary anti-tank capability, as well as to integrate Romania's defense equipment with
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
. Accordingly, during the 2000s, IAR collaborated with the
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
i defense company Elbit Systems to produce twenty-four ''IAR 330 SOCAT'' helicopters, which was designed for anti-tank and battlefield support operations. A modernized utility transport model equipped
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
-compatible avionics derived from the SOCAT, referred to as the ''IAR 330M'', was also produced around this time. A navalised model, capable of search and rescue, medevac, and maritime surveillance, was also developed. The final IAR 330 was produced in 2008; the programme has effectively been replaced by the Airbus Helicopters H215 Super Puma, the production of which was transferred to Brașov under ''Eurocopter Romania'', a
joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and economic risk, risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four rea ...
between Airbus Helicopters and IAR.


Design and development


Background

Throughout most of the Cold War, Romania was a member of both
COMECON The Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (, ; English abbreviation COMECON, CMEA, CEMA, or CAME) was an economic organization from 1949 to 1991 under the leadership of the Soviet Union that comprised the countries of the Eastern Bloc#List of s ...
and the
Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist repub ...
. Despite this, Ceaușescu government sought to avoid becoming overly depend on support from the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
and maintain independence. Accordingly, it was desirable for military equipment to be developed entirely or partially in Romania to bolster the nation's self-reliance, while partnerships with third party countries were also sought for the supply of large ticket items. During the early 1970s, multiple companies, including the French aerospace firm Aérospatiale and the American helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft, were invited to demonstrate their helicopters to the Romanian government, which held the intention of acquiring a license to produce their preferred rotorcraft. Accordingly, on 11 October 1973, the
Sikorsky S-61 The Sikorsky S-61L and S-61N are civil variants of the SH-3 Sea King military helicopter. It was developed and produced by the American helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft. The commercial version of the Sea King was developed during the ...
was formally pitched to a group of Romanian representatives, which included a test flight performed at Băneasa Airport. Between 13-15 October of that same month, a presentation at the Romanian aerospace manufacturer Întreprinderea de Construcții Aeronautice's (IAR) facility at
Ghimbav Ghimbav (german: Weidenbach; hu, Vidombák) is a town in Brașov County, Transylvania, central Romania. It is located in the centre of Romania, 5 miles (8 km) west of Brașov. History The town was first mentioned in a letter written in 1 ...
. The Puma was demonstrated on 20 October. On 30 July 1974, it was announced that Romania had signed a licensing agreement covering the local production of the Puma by IAR. A separate agreement was also signed to undertake the licensed production of the Turboméca Turmo IVC
turboshaft A turboshaft engine is a form of gas turbine that is optimized to produce shaftpower rather than jet thrust. In concept, turboshaft engines are very similar to turbojets, with additional turbine expansion to extract heat energy from the exhaust ...
engines that powered the type.


Initial production

On 22 October 1975, the first Romanian-built Puma, which was locally designation ''IAR 330H'', performed its
maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. The maiden flight of a new aircraft type is alw ...
. Quantity production of the type proceeded shortly thereafter; by 1980, around 25 IAR 330s had reportedly been produced, with the deliveries evenly divided between domestic and overseas customers. By 2010, around 163 of these helicopters have reportedly been built, 104 of which were delivered to the air wings of the Romanian military, while two were retained by the manufacturer and a further 57 were produced for various export operators. Oversea countries that procured the IAR 330 include
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
, Ivory Coast,
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...
, and Sudan. By the end of the Cold War, the IAR 330 was well established as the principal rotorcraft of Romania. Furthermore, specialised variants of the helicopter were developed for roles such as naval warfare, search and rescue (SAR), command & control, and
medevac Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded being evacuated from a battlefield, to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of a ...
operations, typically being produced in limited numbers. The SAR model was outfitted with inflatable floats for emergency landing at sea. Production of the IAR 330 continued into the 21st century, performed by the Industria Aeronautică Română (presently known as ''IAR S.A. Brașov'') at their plant outside
Brașov Brașov (, , ; german: Kronstadt; hu, Brassó; la, Corona; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the administrative centre of Brașov County. According to the latest Romanian census (2011), Brașov has a pop ...
. In 2008, the final Romanian-built helicopter was reportedly manufactured, the company was
privatised Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
that same year. In November 2015, Airbus Helicopters announced that all final assembly of the Airbus Helicopters H215 Super Puma, the successor to the original Puma, would be transferred to a final assembly line in Brașov under ''Eurocopter Romania'', a
joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and economic risk, risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four rea ...
between Airbus Helicopters and IAR; as such, this initiative effectively took the place of the IAR 330 programme.


Operational history

During the 1990s, the Romanian Air Force sought to enhance the combat capabilities of its IAR 330L fleet to make it into a universal anti-tank and support helicopter. By this time, Romania started to cooperate with Israel on several different military programs. The Israeli company Elbit Systems was chosen and, in September 1995, the Romanian Air Force signed a contract with the company to upgrade 24 helicopters with the SOCAT system (''Sistem Optronic de Cercetare și Anti-Tanc''). On 26 May 1998, the first IAR 330L SOCAT was flown from IAR's airfield in
Ghimbav Ghimbav (german: Weidenbach; hu, Vidombák) is a town in Brașov County, Transylvania, central Romania. It is located in the centre of Romania, 5 miles (8 km) west of Brașov. History The town was first mentioned in a letter written in 1 ...
, near
Brașov Brașov (, , ; german: Kronstadt; hu, Brassó; la, Corona; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the administrative centre of Brașov County. According to the latest Romanian census (2011), Brașov has a pop ...
. On 23 October 1999, the second prototype made its first flight. During 2001, the first IAR 330L SOCAT was delivered to a combat unit. In all, 25 SOCATs were produced, including the prototypes, which were rebuilt to production standard in 2005. The IAR 330M NATO is a modernized transport version with the SOCAT version's avionics, but without either the weapons and optronic systems. Among other features, it has a
weather radar Weather radar, also called weather surveillance radar (WSR) and Doppler weather radar, is a type of radar used to locate precipitation, calculate its motion, and estimate its type (rain, snow, hail etc.). Modern weather radars are mostly pulse- ...
. Between 2005 and 2008, twelve IAR 330Ls were modernized to the IAR 330M standard. By the early 2020s, several of the IAR 330 SOCATs were approaching their original operational limits, thus the Romanian Air Force begun contracting IAR to replace life-expired elements and thus facilitate the type's continued service. On 30 January 2007, the first IAR 330 NAVAL helicopter was officially unveiled at Ghimbav. The
Romanian Naval Forces The Romanian Navy ( ro, Forțele Navale Române) is the navy branch of the Romanian Armed Forces; it operates in the Black Sea and on the Danube. It traces its history back to 1860. History The Romanian Navy was founded in 1860 as a river flot ...
ordered three of this variant. The helicopter is in a similar configuration to the Romanian Air Force variant, including the SOCAT upgrade package; however, the Navy rotorcraft are equipped with flotation gear housed underneath the nose and main undercarriage fairings. Much of the mission-specific avionics are supplied by the French defense company
Thales Group Thales Group () is a French multinational company that designs, develops and manufactures electrical systems as well as devices and equipment for the aerospace, defence, transportation and security sectors. The company is headquartered in Paris' ...
. They are typically operated from the Navy's frigates and undertake missions such as search and rescue,
medevac Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded being evacuated from a battlefield, to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of a ...
, and maritime surveillance missions.


Variants

* IAR 330H – initial model (1975–1977). 15 built. * IAR 330L – improved model (1977–present). Out of the 165 built, 112 went into service with the Romanian armed forces. * IAR 330M – modernized variant with
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
-compatible avionics derived from the SOCAT model, 12 IAR 330Ls rebuilt as such between 2005 and 2008. * IAR 330L SOCAT – attack helicopter, total of 25 produced during the early to mid 2000s. * IAR 330 NAVAL – naval helicopter. 3 built between 2005 and 2008, with further trials and upgrades up to 2015. * IAR 330 SM – equipped with Turbomeca Makila 1A1 engines (export configuration for the
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...
).


Operators

; * Air Force of the DRC – 1, delivered in 1971 ; *
Ivory Coast Air Force The Armed Forces of Côte d'Ivoire (french: Forces Armées de Cote d'Ivoire; "FACI") are the armed forces of Ivory Coast. History The Ivorian military has its roots in the colonial armed forces of French West Africa, which were headquartered ...
– 4, delivered in 2003, 2 of which are for VIP transport ; * Kenya Air Force – 9-16, delivered between 1978-1984 ; *
Lebanese Air Force The Lebanese Air Force (LAF) ( ar, القوات الجوية اللبنانية, Al Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Lubnaniyya) is the aerial warfare branch of the Lebanese Armed Forces. The seal of the air force is a Roundel with two wings and a Lebanese ...
– 6, delivered in 1984 ; * Pakistan Army – 4, delivered in 1984 ; *
Romanian Air Force The Romanian Air Force (RoAF) ( ro, Forțele Aeriene Române) is the air force branch of the Romanian Armed Forces. It has an air force headquarters, an operational command, five airbases and an air defense brigade. Reserve forces include one ai ...
– 56 *
Romanian Navy The Romanian Navy ( ro, Forțele Navale Române) is the navy branch of the Romanian Armed Forces; it operates in the Black Sea and on the Danube. It traces its history back to 1860. History The Romanian Navy was founded in 1860 as a river flo ...
– 3 ; * Sudanese Air Force - 15, delivered between 1984-1985 ; *
United Arab Emirates Air Force The United Arab Emirates Air Force (UAEAF) ( ar, القوات الجوية والدفاع الجوي الاماراتي, al-Quwwāt al-Jawiyah wa al-Defa' al-Jawiy al-ʾImārāty) is the air force of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), part of the ...
- 20. An initial 10 IAR-330L were delivered between 1993 and 1994, a further 10 IAR-330SM were supplied between 2006 and 2007. At least 7 SMs were transferred to the Lebanese Air Force between 2009 and 2011.


Notable incidents

* On 23 December 1989, an IAR 330 crash landed after having been presumably shot at during a transport flight near
Alba Iulia Alba Iulia (; german: Karlsburg or ''Carlsburg'', formerly ''Weißenburg''; hu, Gyulafehérvár; la, Apulum) is a city that serves as the seat of Alba County in the west-central part of Romania. Located on the Mureș River in the historica ...
, killing the crew of three and two passengers. * On 16 August 2001, an IAR 330 SOCAT crashed during a training flight shortly after take-off from Titu Air Base. The crash occurred at an altitude of 50 metres (165 ft.), wounding the crew. * On 7 November 2007, an IAR 330 SOCAT, belonging to the 90th Airlift Base, crashed in
Ungheni Ungheni () is a municipality in Moldova. With a population of 35,157, it is the seventh largest town in Moldova and the seat of Ungheni District. There is a bridge across the Prut and a border checkpoint to Romania. There is another border ...
, 30 km south of Pitești, during a night training mission, killing all three crew members. * On 7 March 2013, an IAR 330 SOCAT crashed in
Berești-Bistrița Berești-Bistrița is a commune in Bacău County, Western Moldavia, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. ...
, near
Bacău Bacău ( , , ; hu, Bákó; la, Bacovia) is the main city in Bacău County, Romania. At the 2016 national estimation it had a population of 196,883, making it the 12th largest city in Romania. The city is situated in the historical region of ...
, during a training flight, killing two crew members and wounding three other crew members. The Romanian Air Force and Navy grounded the entire IAR 330 SOCAT fleet pending an investigation into the crash. * On 21 November 2014, an IAR-330 MEDEVAC crashed in Mălâncrav, near
Sibiu Sibiu ( , , german: link=no, Hermannstadt , la, Cibinium, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'', hu, Nagyszeben ) is a city in Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles the Ci ...
, during a training flight, killing eight military personnel and injuring two others. * On 22 March 2022, an IAR 330 crashed near the village of Gura Dobrogei,
Cogealac Cogealac is a commune in Constanța County, Northern Dobruja, Romania. The commune includes six villages: * Cogealac (historical names: ''Domnești'', tr, Kocalak) * Gura Dobrogei (historical names: ''Câvârgic'', tr, Kıvırcık) * Râmnicu d ...
Commune, amid adverse weather conditions while searching for a crashed MiG-21 Lancer in the area, killing seven military personnel.


Specifications (IAR-330L)


See also


References


Citations


Bibliography

* * * *


External links


Official homepage of the Romanian Air Force

Manufacturer's Homepage
{{IAR Aircraft Military helicopters 1970s Romanian military utility aircraft 1970s Romanian helicopters Twin-turbine helicopters Aircraft first flown in 1975
330 __NOTOC__ Year 330 ( CCCXXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Gallicanus and Tullianus (or, less frequently, year 1 ...
France–Romania relations