TROMSØ, NORWAY — Norwegian Justice Minister Astri Aas-Hansen announced Friday that Norway plans to firm options for two additional Leonardo AW101 “SAR Queen” helicopters as it moves to expand its search-and-rescue fleet and build a seventh operating base.
Aas-Hansen said the government has sent Parliament a proposal that would shift responsibility for search-and-rescue operations at the Tromso base to the Royal Norwegian Air Force’s 330 Squadron when the current commercial arrangement with CHC Helikopter Service ends.
Norway linked the proposed operational shift to a wider investment package, saying it will spend NKr4.2 billion ($426 million) to build a new operating base in Tromso and acquire the two extra AW101 aircraft.
“I am proud to be able to say that Norway today has the world’s best rescue helicopter service. With the proposal that the armed forces take over as operator of the Tromso base, preparedness will be further strengthened,”
The additional AW101s would add capacity to what Norway already fields across its rescue helicopter network. The country currently operates 16 AW101 helicopters from six bases, and officials said the fleet is fully delivered and operational.
Adding two more aircraft would bring the total to 18 helicopters across seven bases, a step the government framed as both a basing expansion and an effort to strengthen readiness as operating responsibility at Tromso moves under the state.
The shift proposed for Tromso would mark a change in how that base is run. CHC Helikopter Service currently delivers the search-and-rescue mission there under contract, and the government plan sets out a transition in which the Air Force unit assumes the role when that period ends.
The government did not present the Tromso move as a standalone change, instead tying it to procurement and infrastructure decisions that would allow the Air Force to sustain the mission from a new facility with an expanded fleet.
Officials also set expectations for deliveries of the two additional “SAR Queen” aircraft, describing them in a late-decade timeframe. The government positioned that schedule alongside the planned base construction and the operational handover as connected parts of a single plan.
Norway’s current AW101 footprint spans six bases, and the government’s plan would extend that to seven. In practical terms, distributing the fleet across an additional location can affect how aircraft are allocated, how quickly crews can reach different areas, and how much spare capacity remains when a helicopter goes down for maintenance.
With 16 AW101 helicopters from six bases already in service, adding two more aircraft would not only increase the top-line fleet number. It would also support the goal of spreading aircraft across a wider basing network, which the government cast as a way to strengthen preparedness.
The Tromso transition also points to a shift in the operating model, from a private provider to a state-run approach through the Royal Norwegian Air Force’s 330 Squadron. Norway connected that model to both infrastructure and procurement, saying a new operating base and additional aircraft underpin the shift.
The NKr4.2 billion ($426 million) figure covers two distinct items: construction of a new operating base in Tromso and the acquisition of two AW101 helicopters. Norway’s plan places those investments alongside the parliamentary proposal as the enabling pieces that allow an Air Force takeover to proceed on the timeline implied by the contract end.
That sequencing matters because the government’s proposal asks Parliament to authorize a change that affects both organization and capability. The operational handover requires a base capable of supporting the mission and aircraft available to fly it, and Norway’s plan presents procurement and construction as the bridge between today’s arrangement and the future structure.
Norway also described the two aircraft as options it now intends to firm. The distinction matters in defense contracting, where options can allow a buyer to preserve the possibility of additional purchases while managing timing, industrial capacity, and price terms set under an earlier agreement.
Leonardo extended those options on the original AW101 contract by two months, a move the company made to accommodate the new order Norway now intends to pursue. The original options were set to expire on December 31, 2025, and the extension provided additional time for the government’s plan to take shape.
In procurement terms, option windows can function as a way to keep production opportunities open while political approval and planning proceed. Norway’s approach signals it wants to retain a defined path to additional airframes as it pursues parliamentary backing for an operating-model change at Tromso.
The plan also carries industrial significance for Leonardo, which builds the AW101 at its Yeovil facility in the UK. Norway’s proposed order would be “a significant boost” for that site, the government said.
AW101 manufacturing at Yeovil has declined in recent years, according to the information released alongside Norway’s plan. It said the work there is now primarily focused on airframes for Canada’s CH-149 SAR fleet mid-life upgrade.
That backdrop helps explain why incremental orders matter for the production line. Even small numbers of additional aircraft can affect workload at a facility when output has fallen and remaining work centers on a narrower set of projects.
Norway’s push to expand the “SAR Queen” fleet also follows political direction already given to the government. Parliament previously passed a resolution requesting that the government prepare for the Royal Norwegian Air Force to assume Tromso operations once the existing commercial contract concludes.
By framing Friday’s proposal as follow-through, officials linked the current request for parliamentary approval to that earlier instruction, while also coupling it to a concrete package of aircraft and infrastructure.
The shift to Air Force operation at Tromso also sits within broader questions of how governments balance contracted services and state-run missions in critical response systems. In Norway’s case, the proposal concentrates on a specific base and operator, while pairing that change with a fleet and basing expansion.
The government’s emphasis remained on readiness and continuity. Aas-Hansen’s statement highlighted confidence in the existing rescue helicopter service while arguing that bringing Tromso under armed forces operation would strengthen preparedness further.
Norway did not present the planned seventh base as simply an administrative reshuffle. The intent to firm options for two additional AW101 “SAR Queen” helicopters places new aircraft at the center of the basing expansion, rather than relying only on reassigning existing airframes.
Expanding from six bases to seven with a fleet rising from 16 to 18 helicopters can also influence resilience across the network. A larger fleet distributed over more locations can provide flexibility when aircraft are committed to missions, rotated for maintenance, or repositioned to cover gaps.
Norway’s proposal also makes Tromso a focal point for the next stage of its rescue helicopter system. The plan to build a new operating base there places infrastructure alongside the operational shift and the intended aircraft purchase.
Leonardo’s option extension adds another layer to the timeline. By extending the options by two months, the company effectively kept open the mechanism Norway now plans to use to add aircraft, rather than forcing a renegotiation from scratch after the original expiry date.
The government’s package connects those moving parts—parliamentary approval, construction of a new base, procurement of two helicopters, and a change in operator—into a single narrative about preparedness. Aas-Hansen’s quote placed the armed forces’ role at the center of that message while praising the current service.
“I am proud to be able to say that Norway today has the world’s best rescue helicopter service. With the proposal that the armed forces take over as operator of the Tromso base, preparedness will be further strengthened,”
Norway Moves to Firm Options for Aw101 SAR Queen for Tromso
The Norwegian government has proposed a $426 million investment to expand its search-and-rescue fleet and infrastructure. The plan includes purchasing two more Leonardo AW101 helicopters and building a new base in Tromsø. Crucially, the Royal Norwegian Air Force will replace private contractors in managing Tromsø operations. This strategic shift aims to unify the national rescue model while bolstering Arctic response capabilities and supporting the European aerospace industrial base.
