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On July 30th, it was one year since the Spanish Navy said farewell to its AB-212+ "Gato" helicopters and its Third Squadron.
The Agusta-Bell AB-212 began arriving in the Spanish Navy in 1974, replacing the "grandparents" of the world-famous Huey saga, the AB-204B. The Navy's Aircraft Flotilla (FLOAN) operated 14 AB-212s, of which half remained operational at the time of their retirement from the Navy.
As I mentioned at the time, the Spanish Navy's farewell to the AB-212+ did not mean the end of their service in the Spanish Armed Forces. Taking advantage of the fact that these helicopters had been modernized between 2015 and 2018, six AB-212+ "Gato" were transferred to the Spanish Army's Airmobile Forces (FAMET).
Taking advantage of the fact that they are twin-engine helicopters, ideal for operation in coastal areas, FAMET assigned the AB-212+ "Gato" to the Sixth Maneuver Helicopter Battalion (BHELMA VI), based in Los Rodeos, Tenerife, a unit that already operated AB-212 helicopters but had not been modernized. As we saw here in June, these helicopters have been stripped of the FLIR viewfinder that they carried under the nose when operating in the FLOAN.
The most visible change to these helicopters is that they have lost their old naval gray livery and are now painted dark olive green. Their tails have also incorporated the St. Andrew's Cross, used by the FAMET (National Air Force), the Air Force, and the Civil Guard, but not by the Navy. Yesterday, The Fighter Community published a video of a demonstration of one of the BHELMA VI AB-212+ helicopters, the ET-281 (HU.18-20), at the Puerto de la Cruz Aeromodeling and Aeronautics Festival. I encourage you to turn up the volume; it's a pleasure to hear the characteristic sound of the two-bladed rotor of this helicopter:
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Main image: The Fighter Community.
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