The NH90 has one of the worst reputations in modern military aviation. Australia binned its 46 of them a decade early. Norway walked away. Sweden is phasing its out by 2027. Belgium and Finland are not fans. The type has become shorthand for a European procurement programme that promised the world and delivered a hangar queen.

And then there is New Zealand, which has eight of them, keeps seven flying at once, and has just put the first NH90 in the world past 3,000 flight hours.

The aircraft is TNZA002. It crossed the mark on 26 August 2026, during what the Royal New Zealand Air Force described as a normal test flight between RNZAF Base Ohakea and the coastline. No ceremony, no formation, no press pack. A clock ticked over.

How a small air force beat everyone else at this

The interesting part is not the number. It is that the country with eight helicopters is outperforming the countries with forty.

In May 2026 the RNZAF managed something it called a rare formation flight: seven of its eight NH90s in the air together over the Manawātū region, with exactly one aircraft in maintenance. At that point the fleet had logged 18,250 flying hours at an availability rate of around 70 per cent. The service’s own description of its maintainers is not modest, and on the evidence it does not need to be: an enviable international reputation for the highest NH90 serviceability rate in the world.

That last sentence is the whole story in one line. The decisions that made this fleet work were taken by people setting up the programme more than a decade ago, and the dividend is being collected now. Airbus’s own team lead on the NH90 programme, Patrick Power, has worked on the platform continuously since it entered service.

Four weeks instead of three years

The clearest example of the New Zealand method came in May 2025, when the RNZAF became the first NH90 operator in the world to fit an updated software standard with improved navigation and radio features — including the Saturn secure inter-aircraft communications system and an ADS-B OUT identification system compliant with New Zealand civil aviation rules.

The orthodox way to do that would have been to send the aircraft to NH Industries in Europe, which the RNZAF estimated would have taken three years. Instead the work was done in-house at Ohakea, using equipment secured from a retired Australian Defence Force NH90. The entire eight-aircraft fleet was upgraded in four weeks, without ever being grounded.

There is something quietly ruthless about that. Australia’s abandoned Taipans became the spare parts that kept New Zealand’s fleet flying.

RNZAF NH90s in formation — the manoeuvre that only works if almost the entire fleet is serviceable on the same day.

1,765 miles over open water in a troop helicopter

Since 2025 the RNZAF has also been using its NH90s to set distance records, which is not what this aircraft was built for.

In September 2025 two No. 3 Squadron NH90s flew from RAAF Base Amberley near Brisbane to New Zealand by way of Norfolk Island — a two-day journey of 1,765 miles over open ocean, landing at Ohakea on 30 September. The longest single leg was 660 miles and took around four and a half hours. Each aircraft carried 500 kg of external fuel in tanks, plus an extra internal tank whose fuel, in the event, was not needed.

That was her description of what two 500 kg external tanks do to the look of an NH90. The flight was given an international Kiwi call-sign rather than the Warrior call-sign used at home, which tells you how far outside normal business it was.

A month earlier, two RNZAF NH90s had flown 453 nautical miles from Cairns in Australia to Papua New Guinea — the first time the type had flown between two countries in Kiwi hands. The squadron had trained for it with a long-range flight from Ohakea down to Invercargill, and built a fuel graph predicting burn at each waypoint against aircraft weight, so they could track consumption accurately in the air rather than guess at it.

What the aircraft actually does at home

The RNZAF describes the NH90’s central role as tactical air mobility: supporting special operations, casualty evacuation, and moving troops and equipment. But in a country shaped like New Zealand, the list runs a good deal wider — search and rescue, police operations, disaster relief and counter-terrorism response.

The fleet has been on humanitarian and disaster deployments since 2011 and 2012, including the Kaikōura earthquake and Tropical Cyclone Gabrielle. It has pulled people off car roofs in Canterbury floods. Most recently the aircraft went to Exercise Talisman Sabre in Australia and then on to Papua New Guinea for the country’s fiftieth Independence Day.

None of that is glamorous. All of it requires the helicopter to start.

The NH90 will probably keep its bad reputation, and much of it is deserved — France is the only other major operator that seems broadly content, and it is now inducting 18 NH90 Standard 2 aircraft for special operations. But TNZA002 is a useful counter-example. The airframe was never really the problem. What New Zealand had that the others did not was eight aircraft, one base, and a maintenance organisation that was set up properly the first time.

Preguntas frecuentes

Which NH90 was the first to reach 3,000 flight hours?

TNZA002, an NH90 TTH of No. 3 Squadron, Royal New Zealand Air Force. It passed the mark on 26 August 2026 during a routine test flight between RNZAF Base Ohakea and the coastline. The New Zealand Defence Force announced the milestone on 7 September 2026, and Airbus Helicopters confirmed the aircraft and date.

How many NH90s does New Zealand operate?

Eight, all with No. 3 Squadron at RNZAF Base Ohakea. Between them they have logged more than 20,000 flying hours. The type has been fully operational with the RNZAF since 2015, replacing the Bell UH-1H Iroquois.

Why does New Zealand have such good NH90 availability?

The RNZAF reports an availability rate of around 70 per cent and describes its No. 3 Squadron maintainers as having the highest NH90 serviceability rate in the world. The service credits detailed maintenance planning and systems put in place by the original project team, plus in-house capability at Ohakea — including a fleet-wide software upgrade completed in four weeks that would have taken an estimated three years had the aircraft been sent to NH Industries in Europe.

Why did Australia retire its NH90s?

Australia operated 46 NH90 airframes, designated MRH-90 Taipan, from 2008, and retired them roughly a decade ahead of schedule after recurring engine failures and maintenance problems. In August 2022 Canberra approved the purchase of 40 UH-60M Black Hawks as replacements. Equipment from a retired Australian NH90 was later used to support the New Zealand fleet upgrade.

How far have RNZAF NH90s flown over water?

In September 2025 two No. 3 Squadron NH90s flew 1,765 miles over two days from RAAF Base Amberley near Brisbane to RNZAF Base Ohakea via Norfolk Island, landing on 30 September. The longest single leg was 660 miles and took about four and a half hours, with each helicopter carrying 500 kg of external fuel. A month earlier, two RNZAF NH90s had flown 453 nautical miles from Cairns to Papua New Guinea.

What does the RNZAF use the NH90 for?

Its central role is tactical air mobility — supporting special operations, casualty evacuation, and moving troops and equipment. The RNZAF also uses it for search and rescue, police operations, disaster relief and counter-terrorism response. NH90s have flown humanitarian and disaster relief missions since 2011 and 2012, including after the Kaikōura earthquake and Tropical Cyclone Gabrielle.

Is the NH90 a bad helicopter?

Its service record varies enormously by operator. Australia, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Belgium have all had poor experiences, with Australia retiring its fleet a decade early. France remains broadly satisfied and is inducting 18 NH90 Standard 2 aircraft for special operations. New Zealand’s fleet is the standout success, which suggests the difference lies at least as much in how the aircraft is supported as in the airframe itself.

Sources: New Zealand Defence Force releases of 7 September 2026, May 2026 and May 2025; Airbus Helicopters; The Aviationist; Defense News.