The helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft of the Spanish Civil Guard Air Service

The Civil Guard, founded on March 28, 1844, is one of the most highly valued and beloved institutions in Spain.

The spectacular rescue of a mountaineer by a Bo-105 of the Civil Guard at 2,450 meters
The visit of the Civil Guard to the B-52H 'Wise Guy' bomber on its deployment in Spain

In addition to land and sea resources, this military security force, similar in nature and functions to the French National Gendarmerie and the Italian Carabinieri, has an aircraft unit: the Air Service (SAER), which operates helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles (also known as drones). Fly By Wire Aviation (a channel I recommend subscribing to if you enjoy the world of aviation) has published a report today showing the SAER aircraft and interviewing one of its pilots (The video is in Spanish, you can activate automatic English subtitles in the bottom bar of the player)::

The SAER was founded in 1973 under the name of the Civil Guard Helicopter Section, initially based in Cuatro Vientos (Madrid) and operating two MBB Bö-105 helicopters purchased in December 1972, an excellent model manufactured in Germany, to which two more units were added that same year. In July 1973, the Helicopter Section moved its base to Colmenar Viejo, the headquarters of the Spanish Army's Airmobile Forces (FAMET).

In 1978, the Helicopter Section was renamed the Civil Guard Helicopter Group (AHEL), moving its facilities to the Torrejón de Ardoz Air Base in Madrid, where it continues to operate today. The AHEL operated a total of 28 Bö-105s (10 of them provided by FAMET) and 8 MBB/Kawasaki BK-117s (4 of them provided by the Institute for Nature Conservation, ICONA). Currently, 5 Bö-105s and 3 BK-117s remain in service.

Eurocopter EC-135 helicopters (now known as Airbus Helicopters H-135) began arriving at the end of 2003 to replace the already aging Bö-105 and BK-117 helicopters. However, their replacement has been postponed since only 13 of the 31 EC-135s originally planned arrived.

In 2008, the AHEL changed its name to the current Air Service when it incorporated the Civil Guard's first fixed-wing aircraft: two CASA CN-235MPA twin-engine maritime patrol aircraft, acquired mainly to support the Civil Guard's Maritime Service.

The renewal of the helicopter fleet continued with the incorporation in 2016 of four Eurocopter AS-365N3 Dauphins, provided by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and used mainly for maritime surveillance missions.

In 2020, SAER received its third fixed-wing aircraft, a twin-engine Beechcraft Super King Air 350i, equipped with an electro-optical optronic camera and meteorological radars and dedicated mainly to maritime surveillance missions.

Since October 2022, the SAER has received the new Airbus Helicopters H135P3H, of which a total of 9 units have been ordered, which added to the older EC-135s would complete a fleet of 22 helicopters, which are still insufficient to replace the old Bö-105 and BK-117 helicopters.

Currently, the SAER has its main base in Torrejón and other bases in A Coruña, the Balearic Islands, Fuerteventura, Granada, Huesca, León, Logroño, Málaga, Murcia, Oviedo, Rota (Cádiz), Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Seville and Valencia. In addition, it has two detachments in Mauritania and Senegal, dedicated mainly to combating illegal immigration.

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Main image: Fly By Wire Aviation. Other photos: Guardia Civil.