The NH90 HSPN anti-submarine and anti-ship helicopter that Airbus has offered to Spain

A month ago, Airbus officially delivered the first two NH90 MSPT 'Sable' to the Spanish Navy, from a total batch of seven units.

Airbus officially delivers the first two NH90 MSPT 'Sable' aircraft to the Spanish Navy
MH-60R Seahawk: this is the new multi-mission helicopter that the Spanish Navy will receive

Integrated into the new 14th Aircraft Flotilla Squadron (FLOAN), these NH90 MSPTs are a navalized version of the NH90 TTH, a tactical transport version. The Spanish Army and Air Force also use a variant of the NH90 TTH, the GSPA.

The Spanish Navy expects deliveries of the remaining helicopters to be completed between 2025 (3 units) and 2026 (the remaining 2 units). These helicopters will have as their main mission the transport of troops and special operations, replacing the AB-212 "Gato" of the 3rd Squadron, which were retired from service in July of last year and have been transferred to the Spanish Army.

In addition to these seven NH90 MSPTs, Airbus has offered the Spanish Navy the anti-submarine (ASW) and anti-ship (ASUW) version of this helicopter, the NH90 NFH, a version that is already in service in the Navies of Germany, Belgium, France, Italy, Norway and the Netherlands.

This anti-submarine version, which in Spain would be called the NH90 HSPN, was expected to replace the SH-60B Seahawk operated by the FLOAN's 10th Aircraft Squadron. These anti-submarine helicopters (a total of 12 units) are usually carried on board frigates of the "Santa María" (F-80) and "Álvaro de Bazán" (F-100) classes. However, in April 2023 the Spanish government decided to purchase eight MH-60 Seahawk multipurpose helicopters to replace the SH-60Bs (let us also remember that the Spanish Navy received 8 SH-60Fs to replace its aging SH-3 Sea Kings).

The purchase of the MH-60R led to speculation that the Spanish Navy would ultimately discard the anti-submarine NH90, but in November 2024 the Ministry of Defense started a report on the feasibility of the anti-submarine NH90 HSPN, a study with a cost of 10 million euros and which raises the possibility of purchasing 20 units of this variant, the first ones entering service in 2030. This report is expected to be presented in November of this year.

Like the other NH90 NFHs, the Spanish NH90 HSPNs would be equipped with a sonobuoy launcher and a towed, submersible sonar deployed from the bottom of the helicopter. In addition to these and other detection systems, these aircraft could be armed with NSM AL anti-ship missiles in weapon mounts on both sides of the fuselage. This variant of the NH90 can also fire torpedoes from those same weapon mounts.

This week, Airbus has published a video showing the capabilities of the NH90 Sea Tiger, the German version of the anti-submarine NH90 NFH, a helicopter that is very similar to the NH90 HSPN that Spain could buy:

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Main photo: Airbus. An NH90 Sea Tiger, the German version of the anti-submarine NH90 NFH.