Westland Lynx, the fastest military helicopters on the Iberian Peninsula

@DefAviation ES 10·17·2023 · 21:00 0

The Armed Forces operating in the Iberian Peninsula have some helicopters capable of reaching a speed of 300 km/h.

This is the Merlin, the large Portuguese military helicopter that transported the Pope to Fatima
“We are Soldiers of Portugal”, a video showing the materials of the Portuguese Army

In that category, Spain has the CH-47F Chinook (315 km/h maximum speed), the Eurocopter Tigre (315 km/h) and the NH90 (300 km/h). These are three very modern and very fast helicopters, but there is an older helicopter that surpasses them: the Westland Lynx Mk95 of the Portuguese Navy, capable of reaching 324 km/h.

A helicopter already replaced by the Wildcat in the United Kingdom

The Lynx made its first flight in 1971 and entered service seven years later with the British Armed Forces, which has since retired it from service. Its successor currently occupies its place, AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat, externally very similar but somewhat less fast: 311 km/h. Within NATO, the Lynx is still used by the navies of Germany and Portugal, as well as seven other countries.

The first helicopters of the Portuguese naval aviation

In the Portuguese Navy, the Lynx came to fill a need highlighted by the entry into service of the three Vasco da Gama class frigates (the "Vasco da Gama" F330, the "Álvares Cabral" F331 and the "Corte-Real" F332) in the early years of the 1990s. The Portuguese Navy had not operated helicopters permanently until then, only occasionally. In 1951 he had tested a Westland WS-51 Dragonfly Mk.1A which was later sold to Italy. Years later, Aérospatiale Alouette II and Alouette III helicopters of the Portuguese Air Force operated from Navy ships.

Since the late 1980s, the Portuguese Navy had been evaluating small naval helicopters for its new ships, specifically the Kaman SH-2 Seasprite and the British Westland Lynx. Taking into account the strong historical ties that unite Portugal with the United Kingdom, the choice was predictable. At the end of 1989, the Portuguese Navy decided to purchase five Westland Super Lynx Mk.95, after Portuguese officers took a training course with the Royal Navy.

The creation in 1993 of the Navy Helicopter Squadron

Shortly after the entry into service of the Vasco da Gama class frigates, on June 2, 1993, the "Esquadrilha de Helicópteros da Marinha" (Navy Helicopter Squadron) was formed, its first unit with rotary wing aircraft, based in Montijo. The first two helicopters were delivered on June 29, 1993, the third on November 11 and the remaining two on November 13 of that year. The first two helicopters (WA336 and WA338) came from the Royal Navy, while the remaining three (WA375, WA376 and WA377) were newly built helicopters, according to Aeroflight.co.uk.

Between 2019 and 2021, these helicopters underwent a modernization process in the United Kingdom that included improvements to their engine and new avionics, with a glass cockpit much more modern than the original. The modernized helicopters are designated Lynx Mk95A. This process allowed these helicopters to be seen again with the British cockade and with their original British serial numbers (ZH580, ZH581, ZH582, ZH583 and ZH584), temporarily.

The 30th anniversary of the Helicopter Squadron and its figures

This year, the Esquadrilha de Helicopteros da Marinha celebrates its 30th anniversary. During this time, the Lynx of the Portuguese Navy have been present in operations in the former Yugoslavia, Guinea-Bissau, East Timor, Somalia and the Indian Ocean. According to the Portuguese Navy, more than 400 soldiers have passed through the Helicopter Esquadrilha, which in these 30 years has formed a total of 27 flight detachments and has carried the Cross of Christ (the historic insignia of the Portuguese Armed Forces) to 113 national and foreign ports, flying more than 24,000 hours, a figure reached on June 1, 2023. Congratulations on these 30 years of service to Portugal.

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Main photo: Marinha Portuguesa.