Building on a decade of cooperation in Poland, Airbus Helicopters today expanded its in-country presence by opening an engineering design office at Lodz, which will employ approximately 100 engineers.

This new Airbus Helicopters Polska facility is to be assigned a wide variety of mechanical design activities, with a focus on future breakthrough technologies in such areas as rotorcraft drive systems and equipment. Design work in the office will cover military and commercial helicopters, new-design platforms, and modernization of existing rotorcraft types.

“We see a significant potential from Poland, particularly with its young and skilled engineers who can contribute to a new way of bringing innovation to our products and systems,” said Guillaume Faury, the President of Airbus Helicopters. “Our goal is to have Airbus Helicopters Polska directly involved with us in many fields, including organization, processes and design. This underscores our commient to working with Poland for the long term.”

Airbus Helicopters already has benefited from its 10-year cooperation with Poland, which has involved the Lodz University of Technology, and recently the Technical University of Radom, as well as the Gdańsk University of Technology. As part of this activity, Airbus Helicopters' development of its record-breaking X3 high-speed hybrid demonstrator aircraft was assisted by the Lodz University of Technology's work on propellers, aerodynamic optimization and engine integration. Polish engineers also have contributed to the development of the Tiger attack helicopter and the EC725 Caracal multi-role-helicopter.

The newly-inaugurated Airbus Helicopters Polska engineering design office is located in central Łódź at the Forum 76 Business Center. It is the fourth such facility established by Airbus Helicopters in Europe, along with operations in France, Germany and Spain.

Airbus Helicopters is the leading Western rotorcraft manufacturer in Poland with 54 helicopters currently operating in the country. The company provides comprehensive maintenance repair and overhaul (MRO) services to this fleet through Warsaw-based Heli-Invest – the Airbus Helicopters' local distributor and partner.

In addition, Airbus Helicopters is the only company to have successfully performed an important training program in Poland that enabled the transition from Soviet-era helicopters to modern rotorcraft.