Features MRO
Airbus Helicopters, Kongsberg agreement to support Norwegian Armed Forces

Airbus and Kongsberg of Norway signed a long-term strategic agreement to collaborate over support and services for the Norwegian Armed Forces.

Under the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding between Airbus Helicopters, Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, and Kongsberg Aviation Maintenance Services, the companies will work to strengthen the deployment of local maintenance capabilities with the objective to optimize the availability of the NH90 helicopter.

“This agreement is the beginning of an ambitious partnership with Kongsberg which will strengthen Norway’s autonomy and sovereign support capability in this specialized field,” said Damien Lamy, Regional Director Industrial Cooperation, Airbus Helicopters.

As an initial activity, Airbus explains it is developing and qualifying Kongsberg’s facilities to provide deep maintenance of the NH90 tail gearboxes for the Norwegian fleet and to bring business opportunities for the Nordics where a total of 52 NH90s are operated by Norway, Sweden and Finland. The move will position Kongsberg as prime contractor for this support contract and the first entity outside Airbus to be qualified for the work.

In subsequent steps, Airbus and Kongsberg have identified further paths to exploit a range of additional cooperation opportunities with the objective of enhancing Norway’s support provision.

“Kongsberg has a proven capability in production, manufacturing, repair and overhaul activity for the aerospace industry,” said Terje Bråthen, EVP of Kongsberg Aerostructures & MRO. “Kongsberg is also a strategic partner to the Norwegian Armed Forces for sustainment and logistics.”