SE-JIZ

Information

This aircraft started its career at the Agusta production plant near Milan, Italy, back in November of 1994. It was exported to the Swedish Army the same year and was given the military registration 11335. The machine, which was the last in the line of five AB 412s delivered, was attached to the AF1 helicopter base in Boden and got the callsign Z-35. It was named "Isabella" after the legendary Italian actress Isabella Rossellini.

As the five new AB 412s (designated "HKP 11") arrived they replaced three temporary AB 412s that had been leased from Agusta 1993-1994 (11337, 11338 and 11339).

INTENDED FOR EMS
Back in 1990 the Parliament of Sweden put a tag on SEK 75 million (approx USD 12,3 million back then) in order to use them for the reinforcement of the EMS helicopter coverage in Sweden. At about the same time the Army experienced an evident lack of medevac capacities in warfare, and that was highlighted several times. The two situations led to a deal that meant that the Army got the EMS millions if they agreed to pay an equal amount of money in the purchase of a new helicopter type. The AB 412 was chosen and five machines were bought.
The deal stated that the helicopters would be available as EMS capacities in the civil society in peace and that they would be used for military medevac purposes in war. However, the Army experienced difficulties in signing contracts with the County Councils (which are responsible for local EMS), and the five helicopters stood unemployed. The first, and only, contract was signed with Västerbotten County Council, and it was active between February 1995 and December 2002.

Z-35 - "ISABELLA"
Gina was operated at the Lycksele base as a regional civil EMS helicopter occasionally – switching places with her sister ships on a regular basis. When resting from the EMS service in Lycksele the helicopter type was used for transporting troops and operating other kind of tactical missions all around Sweden. It was, however, primarily an EMS resource.
As the Army Wing became a part of the joint Swedish Armed Forces Helicopter Wing in 1999 two HKP 11s were moved to the Linköping base. The establishment of the Helicopter Wing, which merged the helicopter operations of all the three military branches together, had no further impact on the HKP 11s.

ACCIDENT
The aircraft was involved in an accident during its time as EMS helicopter in Lycksele. It was headed back to Lycksele in a poor weather after leaving a patient in Umeå. The helicopter flew low over the frozen Umeå river when the skids suddenly impacted the ice. The helicopter was damaged but the crew survived. Z-35 was repaired and returned to service.

THE END OF HKP 11
The EMS activity in Lycksele was closed in the autumn of 2002 and the civil operator Lufttransport took over - employing an AS 365 N2 Dauphin (LN-OLJ).

The HKP 11 was cancelled in December 2004, after ten years in service. The four remaining NVG equipped and IFR capable Agusta-Bell 412 HPs were offered for sale. This one was sold to the Spanish operator Fumigacion Aerea Andaluza SA (FAASA). It was transferred to Patria Helicopters' maintenance facility at Arlanda Airport in the autumn of 2005 and was modified for a future in the civilian world (reg. SE-JIZ). The helicopter left the base for Spain in March 2006.

The retired workhorse entered service as a fire fighter in southern Spain. It was used for both forest fire extinction and sanitary transports.

LOST IN AN ACCIDENT
Former Z-35, now registered EC-JNP and belonging to FAASA Aviación, was lost in a mid-air accident in Tijola, Almeria (Spain) in August 2007. The helicopter was fighting a forest fire together with several other airplanes and helicopters, when it was entangled in the bambi bucket of another Bell 412 that was picking up water from the same pond. The occupants survived the accident.