BUDAPEST, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Airbus has begun the assembly of the first batch of 20 H145M light helicopters destined for the Hungarian Armed Forces at its Donauworth (Germany) plant, official sources said here on Wednesday.
The Hungarian Armed Forces will use the new helicopters in light support, search-and-rescue and multirole capacities, the Hungarian government said on its website.
In December 2018, Hungary ordered the helicopters from Airbus at an undisclosed price. Military analysts put the value of the deal at around 270 million euros (307.3 million U.S. dollars).
Hungary ordered the helicopters with the highest-grade weaponry available for the model, which includes infrared-guided air-to-air and laser-guided air-to-ground missiles, a 20 mm auto cannon, a 12.7 mm machine gun and unguided 70 mm missiles, according to the government's statement.
"The Airbus H145 is in service with government agencies, law enforcement and militaries of about fifteen countries around the world," the statement read.
The first four helicopters are scheduled to be delivered in the last quarter of this year, with full delivery of the order in 2020.
