Airbus Helicopters NFH90 Sea Tiger

Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Maritime Helicopter

France | 2025

"The German Army is the first customer of the planned, in-development Airbus Helicopters NFH90 Sea Tiger maritime helicopter."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 12/05/2023 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Image from official Airbus Helicopters press release showing NFH90 maiden flight.

The NH90 "Sea Tiger" is an all-modern dedicated maritime helicopter based in the NHIndustries (now Airbus Helicopters) NH90 series twin-engine medium-lift design. The original helicopter recorded its first-flight on December 18th, 1995 and entered service in 2007 with the German Army being one of its early adopters. Production has been ongoing since 1995 with over 500 airframes completed.

The German Navy is now the first customer of the Sea Tiger type with 32 planned for procurement (2023).

The NH90 series was developed across two distinct production forms, the "TTH" ("Tactical Transport Helicopter") and "NFH" ("NATO Frigate Helicopter"). The TTH is optimized for tactical land-based operations while the NFH is a shipborne / maritime model. The Sea Tiger is based in the latter.

German Naval Aviation already employs a dedicated over-water form specifically for Search and Rescue (SAR) as the NFH "Sea Lion". However, the Sea Tiger brings with it enhanced Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) and general anti-ship capabilities and will succeed an aging line of 22 "Sea Lynx" (Mk.88A variant) helicopters in same role. Service entry of the new type, in full, is expected during 2025.

It is assumed the Sea Tiger will showcase many of the structural and performance specifications applied to the general NFH design form with more advanced onboard systems and enhanced maritime operations. The general aircraft will retain the side-by-side cockpit and sliding fuselage doors along with twin overhead turboshaft engines driving a four-bladed main rotor unit and four-bladed tail rotor unit (the latter seated to port side). The undercarriage, is wheeled though retractable, and various system-related component outcroppings (including a Magnetic Anomaly Detector = MAD) are noted at the nose, chin position, and under the cockpit to satisfy the ASW and anti-ship roles. Door guns can be installed for point-defense / boarding actions while the offensive load out will consist of missiles.

The prototype Sea Lion completed its maiden flight on November 30th, 2023.

Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

November 2023 - The prototype Sea Lion completed its maiden flight on November 30th, 2023.

Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the NFH90 Sea Tiger Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Maritime Helicopter.

2 x Turboshaft engines developing an estimated 2,400 shaft horsepower to four-bladed main rotor and four-bladed tail rotor (facing port side).
Propulsion

190 mph
305 kph | 165 kts
Max Speed

124 mph
200 kph | 108 kts
Cruise Speed

21,325 ft
6,500 m | 4 miles
Service Ceiling

519 miles
835 km | 451 nm
Operational Range

1,750 ft/min
533 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the NFH90 Sea Tiger Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Maritime Helicopter.

3
(MANNED)
Crew

53.0 ft
16.15 m
O/A Length

54.1 ft
(16.50 m)
O/A Width

14,330 lb
(6,500 kg)
Empty Weight

24,692 lb
(11,200 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the Airbus Helicopters NFH90 Sea Tiger Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Maritime Helicopter provided across 2 hardpoints.

Assumed provision for anti-ship missiles and anti-submarine weapons across two external hardpoints.

X

Hardpoints Key:

Centerline

Wingroot(L)

Wingroot(R)

Wing

Wingtip

Internal

Not Used

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Airbus Helicopters NFH90 Sea Tiger family line.

NFH90 "Sea Tiger" - Base Series Designation.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Airbus Helicopters NFH90 Sea Tiger. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 1 Units
Contractor(s): Airbus Helicopter (NHIndustries) - France

[ Germany (ordered) ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 200mph

Lo: 100mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (190mph).

Graph Average of 150 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

Production Comparison

1

36183

44000

Entry compared against Ilyushin IL-2 (military) and Cessna 172 (civilian) total production.

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

Aviation Timeline

EarlyYrs

WWI

Interwar

WWII

ColdWar

Postwar

Modern

Future

♦

1 / 1

Image of the Airbus Helicopters NFH90 Sea Tiger

Image from official Airbus Helicopters press release showing NFH90 maiden flight.

Mission Roles
Some designs are single-minded in their approach while others offer a more versatile solution to airborne requirements.

ANTI-SUBMARINE WARFARE

ANTI-SHIP

MEDEVAC

SEARCH & RESCUE

TRANSPORT

RECONNAISSANCE

Recognition
Some designs stand the test of time while others are doomed to never advance beyond the drawing board; let history be their judge.

Military lapel ribbon representing modern aircraft

Going Further...
The Airbus Helicopters NFH90 Sea Tiger Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Maritime Helicopter appears in the following collections:

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