Brunei has purchased six H145M helicopters from Airbus Helicopters for close air support and surveillance operations. The order is part of Phase B of Brunei’s Support Helicopter Project and follows a previous acquisition of 12 Sikorsky S-70i Black Hawk helicopters in 2011.
The contract signing took place on April 30 at Bolkiah Garrison in Brunei. The helicopters will be introduced gradually starting from 2026 to replace the retired Bolkow Bo 105 helicopters. The H145M helicopters might be armed with machine guns, cannon pods, rockets, or air-to-ground missiles.
The H145M helicopters have operational capabilities for medical evacuation, special forces missions, and potential manned-unmanned teaming with drones. The U.K. Defense Ministry also announced the purchase of six H145Ms for British forces in Brunei and Cyprus.
Brunei’s current defense budget for the fiscal year is 796.3 million Brunei dollars (U.S. $589.3 million), a 31.6% increase from the previous year. Thailand is the only other Southeast Asian nation to adopt the H145M. Brunei also has older Bell 206B-3 JetRanger helicopters used for training, which are due for replacement.
