By Tim Hepher
MARIGNANE, France, March 30 (Reuters) - Soaring oil prices could boost offshore development and accelerate a comeback of the H225 Super Puma, 10 years after a safety crisis, the outgoing head of Airbus Helicopters said.
The Super Puma was grounded for six months following a 2016 crash in which the main rotor blades separated, killing 13 people returning from a Norwegian oil platform.
Offshore operators in Brazil, Nigeria and Asia are using the redesigned H225 but North Sea operators continue
to shun the helicopter, whose roots date back to the 1970s oil shock.
"It is for clients to decide but I am convinced that in coming years it will continue to increase market share in the offshore market," Airbus Helicopters CEO Bruno Even said.
Costly offshore oil reserves could become more attractive to explore as oil prices, on track for a record monthly rise, have surged since U.S.-Israeli attacks began on Iran at the end of February.
RENEWED DEMAND FOR LONG-RANGE OPERATIONS?
The industry has been moving towards smaller sizes but the H225 could see renewed demand for long-range operations as the Sikorsky S-92 comes up for replacement, Even said in an interview.
The H225 supply chain has been kept active in part because of strong demand for military variants, he added.
Overall, supply chains have improved with the proportion of missing parts falling in 2025 to the lowest level in several years. "We still have some suppliers with difficulties and we need to be able to address these," he added.
The French executive steps down this week after eight years running the world's largest civil helicopter manufacturer, during which time the order book has doubled. He is succeeded by Airbus strategy chief Matthieu Louvot.
R&D SPENDING
Last year Even made public the company's first all-new product in a decade: the H140, which is eventually expected to replace the H135 widely used by emergency services. The two models co-exist and both will remain on offer, Even said.
In 2023, Reuters reported that a project called X9, which briefly surfaced in public under Even's predecessor, had evolved into a potential future successor to the sister H145 model and that Airbus Helicopters planned to build a demonstrator.
In late 2024, Airbus Helicopters bought a site next to its German factory where the H135 and H145 are built. The land offers "significant potential" for expansion or future developments, the company said in a 2025 German filing.
Even declined to comment on coded research projects.
"If there are names beginning with X, it's possibly because they are not meant to be commented on externally," he said.
He said demand was strong for the current H145.
"That doesn't mean that, like any self-respecting company, we aren't working on innovation to be able to launch a programme when the market requires. That's true for all our portfolio."
After a protracted lull, R&D spending has broadly risen since 2023, but Airbus is anxious not to let this spoil demand for longstanding best-sellers like the small H125 workhorse.
"There isn't a single day in these eight years that I haven't thought about the successor to each of our products," he said.
Asked what might unlock a replacement for the H125, Even said: "It's a mixture of engines, architecture and hybrid (power). That's the segment most likely to introduce some electric solutions. I don't think the conditions are there yet"
(Reporting by Tim Hepher; editing by Barbara Lewis)
