The government will upgrade nine Bell 412 helicopters in support of the Army. At the same time, new helicopters for the Armed Forces’ special forces will be considered in the work on the new long-term plan for the Armed Forces, which will be presented to the Storting next year.
“The government is now taking action to follow up the Hurdal platform by upgrading nine Bell 412 helicopters in support of the Army, stationed and organized in a separate squadron at Bardufoss,” says Minister of Defence, Bjørn Arild Gram (Sp).
The upgrade will give the helicopters a lifespan of at least 15 years. Before the upgrade can be carried out, the matter must be dealt with by the Storting. “Our ambition is to have upgraded helicopters in place at Bardufoss already from 2025,” says Gram.
The Norwegian Armed Forces will establish a squadron management at Bardufoss that will be operational from the first quarter of 2024. This is an advance of the organization that will operate future helicopter capacity in support of the Army. The unit will help the Army with operational prioritization of the Bell 412, maintain competence and support with civilian hire if necessary. The final timetable for upgrading and building up the squadron at Bardufoss has not been clarified.
Pending new helicopter capacity, the Norwegian Armed Forces’ special forces will continue to use the Bell 412.
The project will have an expected cost of up to NOK 1 billion.