Romania Bolsters Defense with Airbus H225M Helicopter Deal

"attack, reconnaissance, surveillance and tactical protection missions, as well as specialized airborne assault missions."

Airbus and the French Armament General Directorate (DGA) finalize a 12-aircraft contract

Airbus announced that Romania has signed a contract for the acquisition of 12 H225M multirole helicopters. The manufacturer said Bucharest finalized the agreement with the French Armament General Directorate (DGA) under the European Commission’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) loan instrument. Airbus described the deal as one element of wider SAFE-backed cooperation between the company and Romania.

The contract follows Romania’s decision in July to greenlight the estimated €757 million ($845 million) purchase, which Airbus said will see the dozen helicopters enter service to perform the missions Romania outlined in its July statement.

The SAFE loan instrument and Romania’s allocation

Airbus noted the financing for this contract is provided through SAFE, the European Commission mechanism aimed at supporting EU member countries’ urgent and strategic defense investments. Romania’s overall SAFE allocation is valued at €16.8 billion, making it the second-largest beneficiary of the scheme behind Poland, according to Airbus’s statement.

Within that FRAMEWORK, Romania has tapped SAFE funding for multiple procurement efforts. Airbus said the H225M sale is one of several contracts enabled under SAFE for Romanian modernization and capability expansion.

Replacing the locally produced Puma: the H225M and other rotorcraft

Airbus said the dozen H225Ms will begin the replacement of Romania’s IAR-330 Puma fleet — a locally produced Puma variant built through an Aerospatiale license. The H225M is being introduced explicitly to take on roles Bucharest described in July, including attack, reconnaissance and airborne assault missions.

Airbus also reminded readers that, within the SAFE framework, Romania and Airbus previously signed contracts for seven H160 and five H145 helicopters intended to support public service missions. Separately, Romania has ordered two H215M heavy-lift helicopters customized to a naval configuration, the company added.

Other Romanian acquisitions tied to SAFE funding

According to a June government statement cited by Airbus, Bucharest has committed SAFE funding of €12.5 billion to a series of other defense programs. That package includes:

• Acquisition of 298 Rheinmetall-produced Lynx KF41 tracked infantry fighting vehicles;
• Seven Skynex and two Skyranger air defense systems from the German firm;
• Two NVL-built maritime patrol vessels and two diver intervention vessels;
• A total of 34 military drones from Quantum Systems.

Those procurements, taken together with the helicopter buys, represent a concentrated push to equip multiple force elements across land, air and maritime domains using SAFE financing.

What this means for Bucharest, Airbus, and the European Commission (DGA)

• Bucharest: The government is using its €16.8 billion SAFE allocation to modernize rotary- and land-based capabilities and to begin phasing out legacy rotorcraft such as the IAR-330 Puma. The H225M order forms part of a broader, multi-billion-euro modernization program that Bucharest has signaled in public statements.
• Airbus: The contract continues Airbus’s role as a supplier of multiple helicopter types in Romania under SAFE, following earlier agreements for H160, H145 and H215M aircraft. The company framed the H225M sale as an extension of its existing SAFE-backed supply relationship with Romania.
• The European Commission / DGA: SAFE financing — administered by the Commission and executed in this case via the DGA for procurement — is being used to accelerate capability buys across NATO-relevant domains. Romania’s standing as the second-largest SAFE beneficiary underscores the instrument’s role in coordinating and funding urgent defense investments.

Romania’s finalized purchase of 12 H225Ms is both literal and symbolic: a concrete replacement program for an indigenous Puma variant and a visible component of a broader, SAFE-funded modernization drive that stretches from tracked IFVs to maritime patrol vessels and drones. The immediate next items to watch — delivery timelines, integration into existing force structures, and the interplay with previously contracted rotorcraft — were not detailed in Airbus’s statement, leaving operational sequencing and in-service schedules as the practical questions now to be answered by Bucharest and its suppliers.

Original story