AS332 / H215 Super Puma
The Finnish Border Guard acquired three French middle-weight Aérospatiale (now Airbus Helicopters) AS332 Super Puma helicopters in mid-1980’s, to replace the older MI-8 helicopters in air-sea rescue operations. In 2016, the Air Patrol Squadron acquired two more updated H215-versions of the Super Puma, making the total amount five. The aim of the Air Patrol Squadron is to update the oldest three Super Pumas into the H215 -version within three years.
The Super Pumas have served the Finnish Border Guard’s rescue operations for three decades. They saved dozens of passengers when the M/S Estonia sank in Baltic Sea in 1994, in the second-deadliest European shipwreck disaster after Titanic. The Super Pumas have also been used for putting out forest fires, for instance the widespread wildfires in Tammela in 1997.
The crew of the Air Patrol Squadron Super Puma helicopters include five members, and they can carry up to 20 passengers. The helicopters are equipped with, for instance, medical and air-to-sea rescue equipment, night-vision equipment, thermal camera, search radar, searchlight, two rescue winches and forest fire extinguishing equipment.
Dornier DO-228
The current airplane fleet of the Air Patrol Guard consists of two German Dornier DO-228 -aircraft, acquired in 1995. The aircraft are used on sea patrols, both on border control flights and environmental patrols. The Dornier airplanes can, among others, spot oil slicks and control oil emissions.
The crew of the Air Patrol Guard Dornier DO-228 airplanes includes three to four members. The aircraft can carry a maximum of four passengers.
