As we reported earlier this week, another two H225M helicopters arrived in Hungary on Monday to further strengthen the air transport, airborne and special operations capabilities of the Hungarian Air Force. The purchase of the state-of-the-art aircraft is part of the Force Development Programme, essential not only in terms of self-defence and deterrence, but also for the country to remain an influential contributor to regional, and transatlantic security efforts in trying times.
Two more Airbus H225M medium-sized, multi-purpose helicopters arrived in Hungary on Monday, the Hungarian Defence Minister announced. The new arrivals bring the number of H225M helicopters in the Hungarian Defence Forces to ten. The Defence Ministry has ordered a total of 16 medium transport rotary-wing aircraft from Airbus Helicopters as part of the Hungarian Defence Forces Development Programme.
The Hungarian Air Force is being strengthened continually as part of the large-scale development of the HDF undertaken by the Orbán government in 2016. In February this year more Gripen fighter jets were added to the existing fleet.
The new helicopters will
further strengthen the air transport, airborne and special operations capabilities of the Hungarian Air Force
and will be used for training the area defence reserve. In connection with the Hungarian year of command under the command of Major General Dr László Sticz, the Hungarian Defence Forces will provide air search and evacuation (MEDEVAC) and transport helicopter capabilities for the European Union's EUFOR ALTHEA mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Minister recalled that at a time when a 20th century like war is taking place in Hungary's neighbourhood, the Hungarian government still sees the only solution in an immediate ceasefire and the start of peace negotiations.
‘This was the aim of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's peace mission, and we are calling attention to it during the six months of the Hungarian EU Presidency. The NATO summit in Washington also highlighted the need for the Alliance to have strong national forces. In this spirit, and in the interests of Hungary's and our allies' security, the capabilities of the Hungarian armed forces, including the air force, must be improved,’
read the statement of the Ministry of Defence.
The two new aircraft with the manufacturer's pilots left the Airbus factory in France for Hungary on the morning of 15 July, with the handover of the equipment taking place at the MH Kiss József 86th Helicopter Brigade base in Szolnok.
The Brigade received its first Airbus helicopters on 24 July 2023, and the equipment has been arriving ever since.
Earlier this year, Zsolt Kutnyánszky, Minister of State for Defence Policy, Force Development and Defence Industry of the Ministry of Defence, said that the Hungarian Defence Forces are going through a period of transformation and technical renewal, and thanks to the ongoing Force Development Programme (Zrínyi 2026), the HDF is being equipped with the most modern technology. In this programme,
the modernization of the air defence and air force is a top priority.
In 2017, the Hungarian government announced the initiative with the promise of realizing the long-awaited, much-needed modernization and reformation of the HDF in the next ten years.
The force development programme essentially aims to acquire NATO-compatible equipment, from personal equipment to combat gear, manufactured by the international and the reborn Hungarian defence industry.
Hungary’s defence capability has already grown significantly, which is essential not only in terms of self-defence and deterrence, but also for the country to remain an influential contributor to regional, and transatlantic security efforts in trying times.
Hungary has also met the desired 2 per cent budget level for military expenditure in line with NATO expectations for the second year in a row, with the Hungarian Defence Forces spending 20 per cent of the budget on development within the framework of the Force Development Programme.
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