France Renews Helicopter Engine Maintenance Contract with Safran 

The contract ensures the MRO of all 1,600 engines powering the helicopters of the French Army's Light Aviation, French Air & Space Force, French Navy, Sécurité Civile, Gendarmerie, Customs and the DGA Essais en vol By DA Staff / 29 Apr 2022

Discover Leading Defense Technology Solutions

Discover cutting-edge solutions from leading global suppliers
SUPPLIER SPOTLIGHT
Safran to maintain French Government helicopter engines
Follow DA

Safran Helicopter Engines will continue to maintain the French government’s helicopter engines in operational condition for another 10 years under a contract extension with the French Aerospace Maintenance Agency (DMAé, Direction de la Maintenance Aéronautique). 

Designated Saturne (Soutien Avancé des Turbines de l’Etat), the contract ensures the availability and Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) of all 1,600 engines powering the helicopters of the French Army’s Light Aviation (ALAT), French Air & Space Force, French Navy, Sécurité Civile, Gendarmerie, Customs and the DGA Essais en vol.

The contract covers most of Safran’s helicopter engines, including the Arrano 1A powering the new H160M Guépard being developed for the HIL (Hélicoptère Interarmées Léger) program, as well as the H160 operated by the French Gendarmerie Nationale and DGA Essais en vol.

“With the signing of the Saturne contract, the French government has renewed its confidence in Safran Helicopter Engines to ensure the availability of its fleet of 1,600 helicopter engines,” said Franck Saudo, President of Safran Helicopter Engines. “The renewal of this operational condition contract is a source of pride for the men and women of Safran Helicopter Engines. It motivates us to strive for excellence, in line with our ambition to continue to deliver the best of the best in terms of service quality to our clients. We are committed to ensuring 100% engine availability on the French government fleet be it in France, overseas and on external operations, as we have continuously done for over 14 years.”

Saturne is consistent with the DMAé’s strategy to verticalize support contracts, particularly in terms of Safran’s increased responsibility and availability management.

Safran Helicopter Engines’ original MCO contract with the French government was signed in 2001 and renewed in 2011. It ensures a high level of performance and availability within a controlled budget. With Saturne, the scope of services will be expanded to include the use of engine operating data and the provision of digital services to simplify day-to-day maintenance management.

Saturne is managed from the Safran Helicopter Engines site in Tarnos, France.

Posted by DA Staff Connect & Contact

Latest Articles

New muLTElink Features Improve Command & Control for UAS

uAvionix’s latest muLTElink software update enhances UAS connectivity with automated link management, improving resilience, reliability, and cost-efficiency in complex operations

May 21, 2025
Honeywell Unveils Resilient INS with Anti-Jamming Technology

Honeywell has launched its new HGuide o480 INS, delivering precise, resilient navigation with anti-jamming technology for compact unmanned systems operating in GPS-denied or contested environments

May 21, 2025
Trillium Gimbal Enhances Imaging for Launched Effects & Loitering Munitions

Trillium Engineering introduces the HD25-LV-C, a lightweight imaging system optimized for cost-constrained, expendable platforms like Launched Effects and loitering munitions

May 21, 2025
New Hybrid Solution for Long-Term GNSS-Denied Navigation

Advanced Navigation has demonstrated a major breakthrough with a Hybrid Navigation System designed for GPS-denied environments, combining a strategic-grade FOG INS with a laser velocity sensor

May 21, 2025
GA-ASI Integrates Optix Software for USMC Weapons & Tactics Instructor Course

GA-ASI integrated the Optix software into the U.S. Marine Corps' Common Intelligence Picture (CIP), advancing ISR capabilities during the recent Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) course

May 21, 2025
New AI Platform & Autonomous Underwater Glider Unveiled for Maritime Surveillance

Helsing is launching the Lura software platform and SG-1 Fathom autonomous underwater glider—a new maritime surveillance system that uses advanced AI to detect and deter underwater threats with speed, precision, and scale

May 21, 2025

Featured Content

New Line of Kinetic-Capable Unmanned Surface Vessels Introduced

Red Cat Holdings enters the maritime autonomy market with a new line of combat-proven USVs, expanding its multi-domain unmanned systems for naval operations

May 20, 2025
Next-Gen Group 2 UAS Enters Production with Extended Endurance & Upgrades

Aurora Flight Sciences upgrades the SKIRON-X Group 2 UAS with greater versatility and tactical mission endurance, as well as announcing the hydrogen-powered SKIRON-XLE variant

May 13, 2025
Discover ANELLO’s SiPhOG™ for GNSS-Denied Navigation at XPO25

CEO of ANELLO Photonics, Dr. Mario Paniccia, will present at Xponential 2025 on the company's SiPhOG-based inertial navigation technology in GPS-denied and GNSS-contested environments.

May 09, 2025
Advancing Defense Capability Through Strategic Collaboration Defense Advancement works with major OEMs to foster collaboration and increase engagement with SMEs, to accelerate innovation and drive defense capabilities forward.