Fasten your seatbelts as we take a look at 7 most expensive helicopters in the world. While not on par with an airplane in terms of speed and range, helicopter’s ability to land and take off from almost anywhere has made it an irreplaceable addition to many civilian and military services in the world. It is hard to imagine any search and rescue mission that doesn’t feature a helicopter. Even the President of the United States has one.
Privately owned helicopters have been very popular for some time now. Considering their advantages, it isn’t hard to imagine why. Why bother with downtown traffic jams in your limo when you can just hop over on your expensive helicopter and land on the roof of your building in no time. And there are plenty of not so expensive helicopters on the market today designed just for that, everyday commute without suffering through traffic, not to mention the coolness factor. Still, if you want to make a statement, you’ll need one of the models from our list, which can cost well north of $10 million. For longer trips, you’ll still need to fire up the old Gulfstream or purchase some of the expensive first class airline tickets.
Civilian helicopters, even the most expensive ones, still can’t touch military ones, price wise. The top part of our list is reserved for these versatile birds, designed to deliver their deadly payload on an enemy and take an incredible amount of punishment in the process. These combat machines have seen service on numerous threats around the world and have proved their worth in all of them. Piloted by elite crews, they have justified every penny of their expensive price tags.
Before we kick off, a small disclaimer. In the next 5 years, the most expensive helicopter on the planet will be Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion, with a price of $85 million (115 million if you factor in research and development). However, King Stallion has just commenced its test flights and since it won’t be operational for quite some time, we excluded it from this list. So, let’s see who has made it on our list of 7 most expensive helicopters in the world.
7. Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion
Price: $24.36 million
Mission: Heavy transport/ Airborne Mine Countermeasures
Introduced in 1981, CH-53E Super Stallion remains the largest helicopter in the United States armed forces. The Super Stallions from USS Peleliu and USS Bataan hold the record for the longest amphibious raid in history of warfare, when in 2001 they flew 550 miles to from their ships to secure the first land base in Afghanistan, Camp Rhino.
6. Kaman SH-2G Super Seasprite
Price: $26 million
Mission: Multi mission
Although retired from the United States Navy, its primary user, this ship-based helicopter is still in use with several navies in the world.
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5. Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma
Price: $29 million
Mission: Long range passenger transport/VIP transport
Developed from the AS332 Super Puma, multifunction civilian and military aircraft, Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma was designed to meet the needs of oil rigs crews for a long range high capacity helicopter.
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4. Mi-35M
Price: $36 million
Mission: Attack/Transport
The latest variant of iconic Soviet era Mi-24, Mi-35M is highly modernized version of a unique attack and transport helicopter. This rugged beast has seen action in dozens of conflicts all around the planet. Loved by its pilots because of the damage it can soak before it goes down, it is still in use in plenty of militaries around the globe.
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3. Boeing CH-47 F Chinook
Price: $38.55 million
Mission: Transport
Serving in more than 20 countries, Chinook is one of the most recognizable helicopters in the world, with its characteristic tandem rotor configuration. Designed for rapid troop transport and resupply under enemy fire, Chinooks are so handy that the US Army has ordered 191 of the latest F variant in 2008.
2. Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk
Price: $42.9 million
Mission: Multi mission
This highly versatile helicopter can perform several missions, depending on its configuration. Some of them are anti-submarine warfare, medical evacuation, naval warfare, combat search and rescue and others. The most expensive version is SH-60R, armed with MK-54 torpedoes and Hellfire missiles.
1. Boeing AH-64 Apache
Price: $52 million
Mission: Attack
Legendary Boeing AH-64 Apache is number one on our list of 7 most expensive helicopters in the world. Designed in the 70s to destroy Soviet tanks in case Cold War went hot, even today it is a very important element in the United States armed forces and its allies. More than 2,000 Apaches have been built so far, with plenty more on order, as the latest variant, AH-64E Guardian, rolls off from the production lines. However, the D variant remains the most expensive one, with a price tag of $65 million per unit.
