Lynx

The Westland Lynx was the end result of a successful Franco-British cooperation that also produced the Gazelle, the Puma and the Jaguar. When introduced in 1978, it constituted a massive improvement over the older helicopters then in service with the French Navy for anti-submarine duties and quickly became a highly popular rotorcraft. It was considered to be a robust, reliable, dependable and highly effective helicopter. Even more importantly, in difficult weather conditions, when winching survivors or fast roping commandos onto a ship, it was powerful, responsive and remarkably agile. From an asset specialising in antisubmarine warfare, it was soon turned into a multirole platform that proved incredibly versatile, performing an extremely wide range of roles, at sea and from its various home bases. However, after more than 40 years in service, the Lynx was an ageing design, and in August 2020, it was withdrawn from Aéronautique Navale service. Containing over 200 full-colour images, including many from its final embarkation at sea, this book charts the final year in French service of this much-loved iconic machine.