Romania Approves $1B Airbus H225M Caracal Helicopter Procurement

The Romanian parliament has approved the procurement of 12 H225M Caracal helicopters from Airbus Helicopters for 852 million euros ($999.57 million).

The acquisition will partially replace the country’s aging fleet of 57 Puma helicopters, license-built by Romania’s state-owned Industria Aeronautică Română in the 1970s.

This purchase will be financed through the European Union’s SAFE funding program via the French defense procurement agency.

It includes an option to acquire up to 30 additional helicopters after 2030 through the national budget for around 2 billion euros ($2.35 billion), potentially comprising a mix of H225M and H215M variants, according to Opexnews.

Additionally, 12 air surveillance radars worth about 258 million euros ($303 million) have been approved, according to Zone Militaire. While details remain undisclosed, the systems are likely Thales GM200 radars.

$9.74-Billion Procurement

The approvals are part of a broader 8.3-billion-euro ($9.74-billion) military procurement package.

This includes 232 KF-41 Lynx infantry fighting vehicles from Rheinmetall, valued at an estimated 2.6 billion euros ($3.04 billion), with an option for 66 additional units.

Rheinmetall has also been selected to supply air defense systems, including Skynex (476 million euros/$559 million), Skyranger 35 (470 million euros/$552 million), and the Oerlikon Millennium Close-In Weapon System (36 million euros/$42 million).

Additionally, the Romanian subsidiary of General Dynamics European Land Systems will assemble 139 Piranha 5 armored personnel carriers under an 831-million-euro ($975-million) SAFE-funded contract.

Romania plans to acquire 359 vehicles in total, with 220 scheduled for delivery after 2031.