SE-HAJ

Information

This helicopter was constructed in 2000. It was delivered to the Finnish company Copterline in 2000 (reg. OH-HCJ) and put in service on the route between Helsinki and Tallinn, Estonia – the world's fastest regular helicopter route between two capitals.

Unfortunately, the aircraft's sister ship, OH-HCI, was lost in a tragic accident on 10 August 2005. The helicopter, whilst en-route on Copterline Flight 103 to Helsinki from Tallinn, fell into the sea in the Gulf of Finland following a fatal failure in the hydraulic flight control system. Fourteen people lost their lives in the accident. Copterline seized its S-76 operation, and OH-HCJ was grounded.

In June 2006 the Swedish Maritime Administration assigned the new Search and Rescue contract in Ronneby to Norrlandsflyg. The Ronneby station was the fifth and last SAR base to be transitioned from the Swedish Armed Forces to civil operations.

Norrlandsflyg acquired OH-HCJ in the autumn of 2006. It was transported to the US via Sweden for a SAR conversion at Keystone Helicopter Corporation in Pennsylvania. In addition to the conversion the helicopter went through a complete overhaul and inspection prior to being returned to Sweden.

The Ronneby base was opened by the temporary helicopter SE-HOJ on 5 March 2007. The Finnish helicopter soon returned to Sweden with the new registration SE-HAJ (issued in September 2006). SE-HAJ, commonly referred to as "Hajen" (the shark), entered service as Lifeguard 904 in the spring of 2007.

On 1 November 2011 the Swedish Maritime Administration acquired all the stocks in Norrlandsflyg's parent company Scandinavian Helicopter Invest (SHI). The new helicopter division was named SMA Helicopter Rescue, which became a
subsidiary to Sjöfartsverket Holding (administered by the Swedish Maritime Administration). All the SAR helicopters were included in the deal. The purchase also involved the EMS helicopters SE-JUC and SE-JEZ.

SMA Helicopter Rescue was formally incorporated in the Swedish Maritime Administration on 22 January 2014.

Exported to the US
SE-HAJ was exported to the US in May 2019, together with the S-76 SE-JOY. These were the first two to leave of the four S-76s that had been stored on ground after the launch of the AW139s within the Swedish Maritime Administration. Three S-76s had left shortly after the AW139 launch (SE-HEJ, SE-HOJ and SE-JOB).