One of the Royal Bahraini Air Force’s (RBAF’s) new Bell 505 training helicopters is making the type’s debut appearance at the Bahrain air show, within the static display.
With the registration 1002, the light rotorcraft is one of three to have been accepted by the customer in February 2003 at Bell’s Mirabel production site in Quebec, Canada. Its acquisition had not been announced at the time of the 2022 Bahrain show.
Also included in the deal is a training package, along with spare parts and tooling.
The airframer has a long history of equipping the RBAF, which also flies its AH-1Z Viper and earlier-model AH-1E/F Cobra attack helicopters, along with Bell 212/412 utility helicopters.
While Manama has so far acquired three of the aircraft, its military also still employs aged MBB BO105s in the training role.
FlightGlobal’s soon-to-be-published 2025 World Air Forces directory shows that Bell is increasingly establishing its 505 as a military asset in the Middles East and elsewhere around the globe.
More than 70 examples are now operational with air arms and military training providers, it shows, with other current users being Indonesia, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Montenegro, Senegal, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates.
The five-seater is powered by a Safran Helicopter Engines Arrius 2R engine, and has a maximum cruise speed of 125kt (231km/h).
