The Royal Thai Police Aviation Division is undergoing modernisation, with several helicopter types being replaced, writes Dino van Doorn.
ROYAL THAI POLICE AVIATION DIVISION
New helicopters are being introduced to the Royal Thai Police (RTP) Aviation Division based at Ram Inthra Police Airport in the Tha Raeng district of eastern Bangkok. The airfield offers a short concrete runway, hardstandings and three large hangars; two of the latter were recently renewed under the same modernisation programme.
The RTP Aviation Division comprises two aviation wings – fixed- and rotary-wing. The latter includes a variety of helicopters, with older airframes dumped beside the landing pads and harvested for spare parts – its Bell 205s and UH-1Hs having now been withdrawn from use. Two veteran Bells, a 206L-1 and a 206B-2, remain airworthy alongside a single 212, the rest of the RTP fleet comprising more modern types.
Among them, four new Bell 429s and two new Bell 412s were operational at the time of AFM’s visit in August, as well as two AS365N3+ Dauphins, three EC155B-1s and several Bell 412EPs (which lack the 412EPi’s glass cockpit).
Speaking at Ram Inthra in August, the RTP Aviation Division’s commander-in-chief sa…
