Airbus Helicopters has added two new U.S-built vehicles to its portfolio of H125 military helicopters.

The AH-125 and MH-125 Ares will offer a variety of militarized options to best meet the demands of military and parapublic allies and partners worldwide, Airbus announced from Grand Prairie, Texas on Monday.

Scott Tumpak, vice president of Airbus U.S. Space and Defense’s military business arm, said that these additions to the company’s lineup have the capability, reliability and flexibility necessary to serve U.S. allies and partners across a wide range of rotary wing missions, such as light attack, disaster response and other parapublic missions.

He said that the aircraft will be constructed at an Airbus Helicopters facility in Columbus, Mississippi.

To complement the company’s current set of military helicopters, including the H125M, the AH-125 Ares will be configured as the armed version of the helicopter while the MH-125 Ares will be built to fill multiple roles spanning different operations. This family of helicopters is intended to be transformed for different mission sets in under 30 minutes.

Weapons installation design, engineering, certification and manufacturing will be performed by MAG Aerospace. The helicopters will support a number of weapons, including a .50 caliber gun and unguided rockets, and offer an option for precision-guided weapons. The installation enables doors-on flight throughout the mission.

“MAG Aerospace is thrilled to team with Airbus to combine our unique platform engineering and modification capabilities with the world-class leader in the single-engine helicopter market. It’s an honor to work with Airbus and expand our ability to serve our partners in the U.S. and around the world,” said MAG Aerospace President Matt Bartlett.

U.S. federal and law enforcement agencies have already adopted the H125 aircraft. With over 100 of these helicopters currently being used by Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. represents the largest customer and operator of the vehicle.

The U.S. military utilizes other Airbus products, including the UH-72A and UH-72B Lakota helicopters. Since 2006, more than 480 of these vehicles have been delivered to the Army and National Guard.

Airbus has also provided nearly 100 MH-65 helicopters to the Coast Guard, which are used in the organization’s homeland security, drug interdiction and lifesaving missions.

The Department of Homeland Security has released the latest update to its capstone strategy document that assesses a range of threats and challenges facing the nation, from human trafficking and domestic violent extremism to climate change, infectious diseases and organized crime.

DHS said the third Quadrennial Homeland Security Review adds a homeland security mission to combat and protect victims of crimes of exploitation, including human trafficking and child and labor exploitation.

Alejandro Mayorkas, secretary of DHS, said the department will use emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, modernize its operations and equip its workforce with the necessary tools to deliver on the new mission.

“Through updated policies, targeted operations, and by leveraging cutting-edge technology, we are targeting those who seek to exploit the vulnerable and identifying and rescuing victims,” the previous Wash100 awardee said.

The document also reaffirms the five enduring missions outlined in the first and second QHSRs, which are to prevent terrorism and enhance security, secure and manage borders, enforce and administer immigration laws, safeguard the cyberspace and critical infrastructure sector and build a resilient nation and respond to incidents.

Throughout his 20-year career, Hunter Downey has held roles at Accenture, Unisys and SAP’s commercial arm. Now, as national vice president of product launch and architecture at SAP NS2, he leads multiple teams dedicated to cloud infrastructure, cloud product management and architecture-focused work.

Recently, Downey revealed the values behind his leadership approach and shared his career background in an engaging interview with the Potomac Officers Club.

In this excerpt from the interview, Downey discusses the driving force behind his commitment to supporting the federal government:

“I have always had a passion for supporting the US federal government. I am a big believer in service and supporting our country is a duty that I take very seriously. I believe that everyone can deliver value and contribute to our country in a multitude of ways. What drives me is a sense of purpose and contribution. In terms of other goals, there is an ongoing list. I want to help the government with innovation and adoption to make it easier for them to focus on the mission and their people. This is not a destination-driven task. It is a partnership where we can listen, grow together and offer solutions that create a positive outcome.”

To learn more about Downey’s background and leadership style, read the full Executive Spotlight interview on the Potomac Officers Club website.

The Potomac Officers Club offers each of its members the opportunity to participate in their very own Executive Spotlight interview! To learn more about membership options and benefits, click here.

The U.S. Department of Defense has made customized versions of the Climate Assessment Tool available to the governments of Australia, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom.

On Thursday, DOD Offices of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Environment and Energy Resilience, and for Arctic and Global Resilience, held a ceremony to formally hand over the platform to embassy representatives of the allies.

The agency’s climate assessment platform is a common access card-enabled collection of climate data that can be used for research, analysis and the identification of regions that need environment-related studies.

DCAT systems were promised to the allied nations two years ago by the Biden administration, as part of a cooperative agreement on climate resilience and national security interoperability. Military departments can use the tool to pinpoint and analyze facilities needing strategies for climate exposure risk reduction.

Defense department leaders can also be guided by DCAT to compare climate and disaster risk levels in their agency’s components, DOD said.