The Eurocopter (now Airbus Helicopters) AS550 Fennec (now H125M) and AS555 Fennec 2 are lightweight, multipurpose military helicopters manufactured by Eurocopter Group (now Airbus Helicopters). Based on the AS350 Ecureuil and AS355 Ecureuil 2 series, they are named after the

fennec fox The fennec fox (''Vulpes zerda'') is a small crepuscular fox native to the deserts of North Africa, ranging from Western Sahara to the Sinai Peninsula. Its most distinctive feature is its unusually large ears, which serve to dissipate heat and ...

. The armed versions of the AS550 and AS555 can be fitted with

coaxial weapon A weapon mount is an assembly or mechanism used to hold a weapon (typically a gun) onto a platform in order for it to function at maximum capacity. Weapon mounts can be broken down into two categories: static mounts and non-static mounts. Stat ...

s, rockets, torpedoes and various other munitions.

Design

Operational history

As a result of the Vienna Treaty, military variants of the Écureuil were marketed under a separate designation; thus from 1990 onwards the type was marketed as the Fennec."1974: AS350/355 Ecureuil/AStar- AS550/555 Fennec – EC130."
''Eurocopter'', Retrieved: 25 December 2015. In February 2007, India selected the AS550 C3 Fennec over the

Bell 407 The Bell 407 is a four-blade, single-engine, civil utility helicopter. A derivative of the Bell 206L-4 LongRanger, the 407 uses the four-blade, soft-in-plane design rotor with composite hub developed for the United States Army's OH-58D Kiowa W ...

helicopter in a deal for 197 helicopters worth US$500 million. This deal was suspended in June 2007 because of concerns of alleged corruption in the bidding process, and cancelled outright on 6 December 2007. The contract is now being re-competed, and the AS550 C3 is among the helicopters competing for the deal. However India chose

Kamov Ka-226 The Kamov Ka-226 (NATO reporting name: Hoodlum) is a small, twin-engine Russian utility helicopter. The Ka-226 features an interchangeable mission pod, rather than a conventional cabin, allowing the use of various accommodation or equipment ...

T over AS550 C3 in the refreshed tender. On 20 January 2011, Royal Malaysian Navy

PASKAL The Pasukan Khas Laut (''Naval Special Warfare Forces,'' Jawi: ), commonly abbreviated to PASKAL, is the principal special operations force of the Royal Malaysian Navy. PASKAL's task is to conduct small-unit maritime military operations that ...

commandos rescued a hijacked Malaysian chemical tanker and its crew from Somali pirates. A Fennec helicopter provided reconnaissance and aerial gunfire to keep the pirate's mother ship at bay while commandos boarded the tanker.

Variants

;Single engine: * AS350 L1/L2 Ecureuil – Original military variants of AS350. * AS550 C2 Fennec – Armed version based on AS350 B2. * AS550 U2 Fennec – Unarmed version based on AS350 B2. * AS550 C3 Fennec – Armed version based on AS350 B3. ;Twin engine: * AS355 M/M2 Ecureuil 2 – Original military variants of AS355 F. * AS555 AF Fennec 2 – Armed version based on AS355 N. * AS555 AN Fennec 2 – Armed military version, can be fitted with a 20 mm cannon. * AS555 AR Fennec 2 – Armed with cannon and rockets. * AS555 MN Fennec 2 – Unarmed naval version. * AS555 MR Fennec 2 – Naval version. * AS555 SN Fennec 2 – Armed naval version. * AS555 SR Fennec 2 – Armed naval version. * AS555 UN Fennec 2 – Training and utility version. * AS555 UR Fennec 2 – Utility version. * AS555 SP Fennec 2 – Naval version of AS355 NP.

Operators

; *

Argentine Naval Aviation ) Gulf War , anniversaries = , decorations = , battle_honours = , commander1 = President , commander1_label = Commander-in-Chief , commander2 ...

; * Brazilian Air Force * Brazilian Army *

Brazilian Navy ) , colors= Blue and white , colors_label= Colors , march= "Cisne Branco" ( en, "White Swan") (same name as training ship ''Cisne Branco'' , mascot= , equipment= 1 multipurpose aircraft carrier7 submarines6 frigates2 corvettes4 amphibious warf ...

; * Chadian Air Force ; *

Colombian Navy ) , colors= , march= ''"Viva Colombia, soy marinero"'' , mascot= , battles= Battle of Lake Maracaibo Thousand Days War (Civil war) Colombia-Peru War World War II Korean War Colombian Armed Conflict Operation Atalanta , notable_commanders= José ...

; *

Royal Danish Air Force The Royal Danish Air Force ( da, Flyvevåbnet, lit=The Flying weapon) (RDAF) is the aerial warfare force of The Kingdom of Denmark and one of the four branches of the Danish Defence. Initially being components of the Army and the Navy, it was ...

; *

Ecuadorian Army The Ecuadorian Army ( es, ''Ejército Ecuatoriano'', italic=unset) is the land component of the Ecuadorian Armed Forces. Its 160,500 soldiers are deployed in relation to its military doctrine. The contemporary Ecuadorian Army incorporates many jun ...

;

AS355 Twin Squirrel - RIAT 2011 (out cropped)

French Air and Space Force The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

; *

Indonesian Army The Indonesian Army ( id, Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Darat (TNI-AD), ) is the land branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. It has an estimated strength of 300,000 active personnel. The history of the Indonesian Army has its ...

; * Kenya Air Force ; * Royal Malaysian Navy *

Mexican Navy The Mexican Navy is one of the two independent armed forces of Mexico. The actual naval forces are called the ''Armada de México''. The ''Secretaría de Marina'' (''SEMAR'') (English: Naval Secretariat) includes both the ''Armada'' itself and ...

Pakistan Army Aviation Corps , image = AAvn logo.PNG , caption = Formation Sign of Army Aviation Command , start_date = 14 August 1947 – present , country = , allegiance ...

Qatar Emiri Air Force The Qatar Emiri Air Force ( ar, القوات الجوية الأميرية القطرية , Al-Quwwat Al-Jawiyah Al-Amiriyah Al-Qatariyah) (QEAF) is the air arm of the armed forces of the state of Qatar. It was established in 1974 as a small aer ...

. *

Tanzania Air Force Command The Tanzania Air Force Command ( sw, Kamandi ya Jeshi la Anga) is the aerial service branch of the Tanzania People's Defence Force (TPDF). The current commander of the Tanzania Air Force Command is Major General SB MANI , who replaced major gen ...

Royal Thai Army The Royal Thai Army or RTA ( th, กองทัพบกไทย; ) is the army of Thailand and the oldest and largest branch of the Royal Thai Armed Forces. History Origin The Royal Thai Army is responsible for protecting the kingdom's ...

Uzbekistan Air and Air Defence Forces The Air and Air Defence Forces (; ) are the aerial arm of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Uzbekistan. It was formed following the collapse of the Soviet Union, in 1991, though the military was not created by the Uzbek government until 1992. ...

Former operators

; *

Republic of Singapore Air Force The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is the aerial service branch of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) responsible for controlling and defending the airspace of the country, and providing air support to the Army and Navy. It was establi ...

Specifications (AS550 C3)

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Jackson, Paul. ''Jane's All The World's Aircraft 2003–2004''. Coulsdon, UK:Jane's Information Group, 2003. .

External links

Official webpage

{{Eurocopter Airbus aircraft Airbus Helicopters aircraft Military helicopters 1990s French helicopters Fennec Single-turbine helicopters