Start here
A few places to begin, from the aircraft’s story to the people who fly it.
Meet the aircraft
The H225, formerly EC225, developed the civilian Super Puma family into a long-range transport helicopter. It combines a substantial passenger cabin with twin turbine engines and a five-bladed main rotor. Offshore support, search and rescue, and government transport are among its roles. Much of the aircraft's character lies in its integrated systems rather than a single headline performance figure.
Aircraft background
Wikipedia contributors · Read more ↗A buoy stands in for an offshore platform
Erdos found the EC225 cockpit imposing at first, with enough equipment to make a checklist welcome. Test pilot Hervé Jammayrac made the preparation look easy. Once airborne, the helicopter’s steady hover and smooth ride became more immediate impressions than the complexity surrounding the pilot’s seat. The team briefly switched off active vibration control to demonstrate its effect, and Erdos soon wanted it restored.
Vertical · February 2014. EC225 demonstration at Marignane with Hervé Jammayrac and Christophe Skorlic; offshore configuration carrying development avionics, at a reported 9.7 tonnes.
Vertical · Read more ↗Loading information stays connected to the simulator
The PERFPO page shows fuel and payload information synchronised with the simulator’s Weight & Balance dialog and the FMS. This gives the simulated cockpit a way to reflect the loading selected for a flight.
H225 · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read more ↗Into the cockpit
YouTube Vertical Plus · 6 min ·
Airbus/Air Center Helicopters H225 WALKAROUND
Air Center Helicopters opens its special-missions H225 for a walkaround.
Real aircraft · Airbus Helicopter H225
Watch on YouTube ↗Preview images are served by AirframeDB. Videos open on YouTube only when you choose to watch.
Meet Airbus Helicopter H225
The H225, formerly EC225, developed the civilian Super Puma family into a long-range transport helicopter. It combines a substantial passenger cabin with twin turbine engines and a five-bladed main rotor. Offshore support, search and rescue, and government transport are among its roles.
HPG's simulation includes automatic flight controls and a separate vibration-control system, with their functions described in its manual.
Airbus Helicopter H225
Airbus Helicopters → · Explore the family →
Airbus Helicopter H225
Wikipedia contributors · Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma ↗Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024 →Aircraft type designators
Use the code for the model you are flying. The linked authority lists the applicable aircraft.
History & design
A new chapter in Greenland’s rescue service
Air Greenland moved from the S-61 to the H225 in December 2020. Duke’s report describes how the transition also brought changes to crew roles and medical training, extending beyond the aircraft itself.
Vertical · Air Greenland: the edge of everything ↗Operator transition described in April 2026
Evacuation work from a neighbouring country
Air Center Helicopters based H225s in Santo Domingo during its 2024 Haiti evacuation operation. Airbus’s operator report describes permissions, changing routes and cabin arrangements as central to the work of moving evacuees.
Airbus · Air Center Helicopters uses H225s for Haiti evacuations ↗Manufacturer-published operator account; March–May 2024
Development milestones
First flight: 27 November 2000
Developed from: Eurocopter AS332 Super Puma
Wikipedia contributors · Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma ↗Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma · family/variant named by the source · Wikipedia revision 1372906008
Pilot accounts
A buoy stands in for an offshore platform
Erdos found the EC225 cockpit imposing at first, with enough equipment to make a checklist welcome. Test pilot Hervé Jammayrac made the preparation look easy. Once airborne, the helicopter’s steady hover and smooth ride became more immediate impressions than the complexity surrounding the pilot’s seat.
The team briefly switched off active vibration control to demonstrate its effect, and Erdos soon wanted it restored. A shipping buoy then served as an imaginary offshore destination for a coupled approach and hover. Other demonstrations included a simulated engine failure in training mode and a planned traffic encounter with an NH90. These were organised evaluation exercises, not real emergencies.
Vertical · February 2014. EC225 demonstration at Marignane with Hervé Jammayrac and Christophe Skorlic; offshore configuration carrying development avionics, at a reported 9.7 tonnes.
Read the full account · Vertical ↗A rescue starts with distance, weather and another fuel plan
A Canadian trawler far off Greenland’s west coast needed a medical evacuation. Nobréus described how the ship first steamed closer while the H225 crew prepared and refuelled at Aasiaat. By the time they met over the Davis Strait, careful coordination had turned a remote call into a brief hoist operation, followed by a flight to medical help at Ilulissat.
For Nobréus, the aircraft’s equipment was valuable, but knowing when a mission could no longer continue remained essential. Greenland’s scattered weather information and long distances demanded alternatives, including somewhere to obtain fuel. He described the difficult decision to leave when time ran out, alongside the satisfaction of returning after a successful rescue. Both feelings belonged to the same job: helping someone while bringing the crew home too.
Vertical interview · April 2026. Air Greenland H225 AWSAR operations, including a medical evacuation from a Canadian trawler west of Greenland; exact mission date is not stated.
Read the full account · Vertical ↗Relief when a missing swimmer reaches the cabin
The H225 crew received a call to collect a woman who had been recovered by boats after a prolonged ordeal at sea. When the pilot realised she was the missing swimmer whose disappearance had prompted a search, the news was startling. Seeing that her condition was stable brought relief as the crew completed the transfer from the vessel.
The aircraft returned with the patient to the Yokohama Maritime Disaster Prevention Base for onward care. In Airbus’s interview, the unnamed pilot connected the mission with the help provided by the rescue automation and the space available for treatment in the cabin. The account describes a specific H225 operation; the same interview’s separate recollection of earthquake response concerned an H215 and is not treated as this helicopter’s experience.
Airbus interview · October 2024. July 2024 mission in H225 JA690A from Haneda, recovering a woman from a boat and transferring her to a Yokohama base.
Read the full account · Airbus ↗In your simulator
Systems, equipment and documentation for each developer’s aircraft.
MSFS 2024H225
Microsoft Flight Simulator · Released
H225
Microsoft Flight Simulator · Released
Aircraft specifications
Published figures for the named real-aircraft variant. Simulator equipment and performance can differ.
| Specification | Published value |
|---|---|
| Length | 19.5 m (64 ft 0 in) |
| Height | 4.97 m (16 ft 4 in) |
| Empty weight | 5,256 kg (11,587 lb) |
| Gross weight | 11,000 kg (24,251 lb) |
| Max takeoff weight | 11,200 kg (24,692 lb) |
| Powerplant | 2 × Turbomeca Makila 2A1 turboshaft engines, 1,776 kW (2,382 hp) each |
| Main rotor diameter | 16.2 m (53 ft 2 in) |
| Main rotor area | 206.15 m² (2,219.0 sq ft) |
| Maximum speed | 275.5 km/h (171.2 mph, 148.8 kn) |
| Cruise speed | 260.5 km/h (161.9 mph, 140.7 kn) |
| Range | 857 km (533 mi, 463 nmi) |
| Service ceiling | 5,900 m (19,400 ft) |
| Rate of climb | 8.7 m/s (1,710 ft/min) |
Manuals & resources
Find your next read
Choose a topic for a short introduction and a link to the original source. Simulator references identify the developer and edition they cover.
Simulator documentation
Loading information stays connected to the simulatorH225 · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
The PERFPO page shows fuel and payload information synchronised with the simulator’s Weight & Balance dialog and the FMS. This gives the simulated cockpit a way to reflect the loading selected for a flight.
H225 user guide 1.0 · 14 November 2024 · PDF pp.65–66
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Choose the level of detail on the vehicle displayH225 · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
The VEH page groups oil, fuel and hydraulic information. Its NUM key shows or hides numerical values that are within range; out-of-range parameters automatically gain numerical indications. The guide explains this alongside the separate engine and FADEC pages.
H225 user guide 1.0 · PDF pp.67–70
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Flight control and vibration control are separate systemsH225 · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
The H225 guide describes four-axis AFCS basic and upper modes, with trim-release controls for both cyclic and collective. It separately describes AVCS switches for cabin and cockpit vibration control. The similar-looking abbreviations refer to different systems: one manages flight control, while the other addresses vibration in the represented aircraft.
H225 user guide 1.0 · PDF pp.37-38,89-92
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Pilot account
A buoy stands in for an offshore platformVertical · February 2014. EC225 demonstration at Marignane with Hervé Jammayrac and Christophe Skorlic; offshore configuration carrying development avionics, at a reported 9.7 tonnes.
Erdos found the EC225 cockpit imposing at first, with enough equipment to make a checklist welcome. Test pilot Hervé Jammayrac made the preparation look easy. Once airborne, the helicopter’s steady hover and smooth ride became more immediate impressions than the complexity surrounding the pilot’s seat. The team briefly switched off active vibration control to demonstrate its effect, and Erdos soon wanted it restored.
Robert Erdos
Vertical · Read the source ↗A rescue starts with distance, weather and another fuel planVertical interview · April 2026. Air Greenland H225 AWSAR operations, including a medical evacuation from a Canadian trawler west of Greenland; exact mission date is not stated.
A Canadian trawler far off Greenland’s west coast needed a medical evacuation. Nobréus described how the ship first steamed closer while the H225 crew prepared and refuelled at Aasiaat. By the time they met over the Davis Strait, careful coordination had turned a remote call into a brief hoist operation, followed by a flight to medical help at Ilulissat. For Nobréus, the aircraft’s equipment was valuable, but knowing when a mission could no longer continue remained essential.
Petrus Nobréus
Vertical · Read the source ↗Read the original documentation from the people who created it. Manuals open on their publisher’s website.
Manual
Airbus H225Microsoft / aircraft developers Microsoft Flight Simulator aircraft manualsMicrosoft / aircraft developersAircraft background
Eurocopter EC225 Super PumaWikipedia contributors · Research background · Wikipedia revision 1372906008 · retrieved 2026-09-12 Air Center Helicopters uses H225s for Haiti evacuationsAirbus · Operator account · 25 July 2024Resource
MSFS 2024 FAQ and edition aircraft inventoryMicrosoftType designator
ICAO Doc 8643 — aircraft type designatorsInternational Civil Aviation Organization · Public search data retrieved 2026-09-14; authority update 2026-09-03Built-in force-feedback profiles
Read the documentary basis, editable starting settings and remaining questions for the aircraft you fly. Each explanation refers to the exact profile revision shown.
Catalogue programme-20261022-v1 · 1 profile choice
Airbus Helicopter H225
Free and Pro · Revision 1 · Partial review
MSFS 2024
Airbus Helicopter H225: The configured cyclic centre is a reduced representation of the H225 control arrangement, with vibration and gear cues treated separately.
Airbus Helicopter H225
Airbus Helicopter H225: The configured cyclic centre is a reduced representation of the H225 control arrangement, with vibration and gear cues treated separately.
Aircraft and simulator scope
- Airbus Helicopter H225 · MSFS 2024 · family starting point
HPG H225 Microsoft MSFS user guide version 1.0; real-aircraft qualification and later add-on revisions are separate. · Selected choice: Airbus Helicopter H225. Documentary scope does not establish every variant, add-on revision or simulator binding.
The simulator model and controls
The H225, formerly EC225, developed the civilian Super Puma family into a long-range transport helicopter. It combines a substantial passenger cabin with twin turbine engines and a five-bladed main rotor. Offshore support, search and rescue, and government transport are among its roles.
This starting point selects Airbus Helicopter H225. Its aircraft-level settings do not select a particular developer’s custom systems.
How this profile feels
Spring resistance builds with the selected airspeed response. A separate aerodynamic term adds speed-dependent control load.
Local force trim holds the selected hardware centre. Autopilot following is off.
Cyclic damping is on. Its configured gain is 0.35; it resists hardware motion separately from the spring and aircraft stabilization.
Controls and trim
The HPG H225 guide describes separate cyclic and collective trim release. Automatic trim anchors the controls and interacts with autopilot actuator inhibition; beep trim has its own cyclic function. Retractable landing gear uses hydraulic and emergency-pump systems. These documented mechanisms give trim, stabilization and gear operation separate roles in the selected helicopter configuration.
About the values
The gains are normalized profile settings. They describe the chosen effect balance; hand force depends on the device and its output limits. IAS references are tuning values rather than operating limits. Physical acceptance of this revision remains pending.
What the documentation establishes
The HPG guide identifies H225 cyclic and collective trim-release controls.
Automatic trim manages cyclic and collective anchoring and autopilot actuator inhibition; it is not equivalent to a simple local latch.
Cyclic beep trim and separate cyclic/collective release are documented; their aircraft-specific behavior is only partly represented by local force trim.
The guide describes autopilot actuator interaction with trim release; disabled following does not imply absent AFCS.
Retractable landing gear and hydraulic/emergency-pump operation are described; the preset gear cue is an estimate.
Documentary review and sources
These decisions describe the documentary basis and remaining gaps for this revision. Aircraft documentation and a starting setting describe different kinds of evidence.
Aircraft and variant
ReviewedThis starting point selects Airbus Helicopter H225. Its aircraft-level settings do not select a particular developer’s custom systems.
Flight controls
ReviewedThe HPG H225 guide describes separate cyclic and collective trim release. Automatic trim anchors the controls and interacts with autopilot actuator inhibition; beep trim has its own cyclic function. Retractable landing gear uses hydraulic and emergency-pump systems. These documented mechanisms give trim, stabilization and gear operation separate roles in the selected helicopter configuration.
Trim
ReviewedCyclic damping is on. Its configured gain is 0.35; it resists hardware motion separately from the spring and aircraft stabilization.
Autopilot and stability
ReviewedAutopilot following is off; the configured spring and load retain the hardware feel.
Equipment
ReviewedGear, flap and ground cues follow the selected settings and available simulator-reported states.
Speeds and limits
Not yet reviewedThe indicated-speed references set the profile response scale; they are separate from aircraft operating limits.
Simulator integration
ReviewedThe profile targets msfs2024. Add-on-specific controls use only the supported references configured by this profile.
Force-feedback settings
Not yet reviewedThe settings define the profile’s effect balance. Device output limits affect physical hand force.
Starting settings and their rationale
These configured values are starting estimates. The explanations describe what each setting controls; physical validation appears separately below.
| Setting | Starting value | What it controls and why |
|---|---|---|
| Spring strength | Starting value0 | What it controls and whyThe configured cyclic centre is a reduced representation of the H225 control arrangement, with vibration and gear cues treated separately. The baseline spring is 0. Its low-speed blend reaches baseline strength at 70 KIAS. |
| Master force gain | Starting value0.85 | What it controls and whyScales overall profile strength while preserving effect balance, subject to device and output limits. |
| Profile force gain | Starting value0.35 | What it controls and whyThe aerodynamic-load gain is 0.35 with an indicated-speed reference of 140 KIAS. This supplies speed-dependent loading alongside the spring. |
| Force tuning speed/reference | Starting value140.0 kt | What it controls and whySets the IAS reference for aerodynamic loading. It is an estimate, not published cruise TAS or a flight limit. |
| Spring response reference speed | Starting value70.0 kt | What it controls and whySets the IAS where the low-speed blend reaches baseline strength; high-speed stiffening also uses it. |
| Aileron force scale | Starting value1 | What it controls and whyRoll and pitch aerodynamic scales are 1 and 1, respectively. They set the aerodynamic axis balance. No custom spring-travel curve is enabled. |
| Elevator force scale | Starting value1 | What it controls and whyScales pitch aerodynamic loading; pitch spring travel and trim responses are separate settings. |
| Trim feel | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyRetained for compatibility and group membership. Trim relief, rather than this flag, controls centre movement. |
| Trim relief | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyAllows trim relief with supported control law and valid telemetry. Axis authorities set its amount. |
| Autopilot follow | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyAutopilot following is off; the configured spring and load retain the hardware feel. |
| Autopilot neutral hold | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyPermits centering hold during a supported AP state, separate from following a moving target. |
| Output force limit | Starting value0.55 | What it controls and whyCaps directed-force output. Native spring effects and device limits remain separate. |
All 44 starting settings and their rationale
The settings define the profile’s effect balance. Device output limits affect physical hand force.
| Setting | Starting value | What it controls and why |
|---|---|---|
| Spring strength | Starting value0 | What it controls and whyThe configured cyclic centre is a reduced representation of the H225 control arrangement, with vibration and gear cues treated separately. The baseline spring is 0. Its low-speed blend reaches baseline strength at 70 KIAS. |
| Spring deadband | Starting value0.02 | What it controls and whySets travel around the centre before the baseline spring resists. Smaller values engage it sooner. |
| Profile force gain | Starting value0.35 | What it controls and whyThe aerodynamic-load gain is 0.35 with an indicated-speed reference of 140 KIAS. This supplies speed-dependent loading alongside the spring. |
| Master force gain | Starting value0.85 | What it controls and whyScales overall profile strength while preserving effect balance, subject to device and output limits. |
| QBlend Enabled | Starting valueEnabled | What it controls and whyAllows baseline spring strength to rise with indicated airspeed where the control law permits it. |
| QSpring Minimum Factor | Starting value1 | What it controls and whySets low-speed spring strength as a fraction of baseline when blending is enabled. One keeps full strength. |
| QSpring Start Knots | Starting value19.6 kt | What it controls and whySets the IAS where the low-speed spring blend starts rising. This is a feel threshold, not a flight limit. |
| Spring response reference speed | Starting value70.0 kt | What it controls and whySets the IAS where the low-speed blend reaches baseline strength; high-speed stiffening also uses it. |
| Force tuning speed/reference | Starting value140.0 kt | What it controls and whySets the IAS reference for aerodynamic loading. It is an estimate, not published cruise TAS or a flight limit. |
| Airspeed spring stiffening gain | Starting value0 | What it controls and whyAdds permitted spring resistance above the full-blend speed. Zero removes this high-speed increase. |
| Airspeed spring stiffening limit | Starting value5 | What it controls and whyLimits the squared airspeed ratio used for high-speed spring stiffening; it is not a device-force cap. |
| Aileron force scale | Starting value1 | What it controls and whyRoll and pitch aerodynamic scales are 1 and 1, respectively. They set the aerodynamic axis balance. No custom spring-travel curve is enabled. |
| Elevator force scale | Starting value1 | What it controls and whyScales pitch aerodynamic loading; pitch spring travel and trim responses are separate settings. |
| Output force limit | Starting value0.55 | What it controls and whyCaps directed-force output. Native spring effects and device limits remain separate. |
| Trim feel | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyRetained for compatibility and group membership. Trim relief, rather than this flag, controls centre movement. |
| Trim relief | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyAllows trim relief with supported control law and valid telemetry. Axis authorities set its amount. |
| Elevator Authority | Starting value0.3 | What it controls and whyScales supported pitch-trim relief and permitted centre movement. Zero removes pitch response. |
| Aileron Authority | Starting value0.3 | What it controls and whyScales supported roll-trim relief and permitted centre movement. Zero removes roll response. |
| Force Trim Enabled | Starting valueEnabled | What it controls and whyA local spring latch cannot reproduce the H225's automatic anchoring, separate collective release and autopilot actuator interaction. Local force trim is on. It holds a selected spring centre with strength 0.55. |
| GLoad Enabled | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyAllows load-factor changes to modify permitted spring laws. Passive fly-by-wire feel can suppress it. |
| Rate Damping Enabled | Starting valueEnabled | What it controls and whyEnables rate damping with the configured coefficients and control law. |
| Autopilot follow | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyAutopilot following is off; the configured spring and load retain the hardware feel. |
| Autopilot follow authority | Starting value0.05 | What it controls and whySets admitted AP-follow gain, not a percentage of travel. Runtime ownership and input limits still apply. |
| Autopilot neutral hold | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyPermits centering hold during a supported AP state, separate from following a moving target. |
| Autopilot neutral hold strength | Starting value0.6 | What it controls and whySets admitted AP neutral-hold strength; inactive while neutral hold is disabled. |
| Enabled | Starting valueEnabled | What it controls and whyEnables aerodynamic cues; each still needs nonzero strength and its simulator conditions. |
| Gain | Starting value0 | What it controls and whySets stall-buffet strength. Zero removes the cue without changing simulator stalls or warnings. |
| Gain | Starting value0 | What it controls and whySets high-Mach buffet strength; onset and full-strength thresholds are separate. |
| Gain | Starting value0 | What it controls and whySets flap buffet at the configured position and speed gates. Flap movement texture is separate. |
| Maximum flap index | Starting value1 | What it controls and whySets the final flap index for detent normalization. UP plus three detents uses maximum index3. |
| Minimum flap index | Starting value1 | What it controls and whySets the first flap detent that admits buffet; this is a handle index, not degrees. |
| Gain | Starting value0.1 | What it controls and whySets gear aerodynamic buffet; movement and ground-contact cues are separate. |
| Shaker Enabled | Starting valueDisabled | What it controls and whyPermits shaker at supported warning conditions; the switch does not establish aircraft equipment. |
| Stick shaker amplitude | Starting value0.5 | What it controls and whySets triggered shaker strength; inactive while the shaker feature is disabled. |
| Enabled | Starting valueEnabled | What it controls and whyEnables ground effects; each still needs its own strength and contact or motion telemetry. |
| Gain | Starting value0.15 | What it controls and whySets rolling texture strength, modified by speed, surface and undercarriage configuration. |
| Gain | Starting value0 | What it controls and whySets gear-bump texture during ground motion, separate from touchdown impact. |
| Gain | Starting value0.5 | What it controls and whySets landing-impact strength; landing telemetry and response shape determine the pulse. |
| Gain | Starting value0 | What it controls and whySets reverse-thrust vibration with valid reverser and engine conditions. Zero removes the cue. |
| Enabled | Starting valueEnabled | What it controls and whyEnables engine cues with nonzero settings and valid running-engine telemetry. |
| Gain | Starting value0.06 | What it controls and whySets estimated engine vibration using configured telemetry and response, not measured cockpit vibration. |
| Enabled | Starting valueEnabled | What it controls and whyEnables accessory cues with configured strengths and observed accessory movement. |
| Gain | Starting value0 | What it controls and whySets texture from observed flap movement; a command without movement does not establish the cue. |
| Gain | Starting value0.12 | What it controls and whySets texture from observed gear movement, separate from aerodynamic and touchdown effects. |
Limits and open questions
- The trim/AFCS section does not derive the selected indicated-speed force reference.
- Cyclic anchoring and autopilot descriptions do not calibrate the preset's spring force, damping or rotor vibration.
Physical validation
No physical force validation is recorded in this public catalogue for this revision. Documentary review and software checks do not establish how a particular device feels.
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