Satisfying a Royal Air Force requirement for an effective medium support helicopter, when the Westland Puma HC.1 entered service with No.33 Squadron in 1971, it was the first Anglo-French aircraft collaboration of its kind. 

Possessing exceptional speed and agility, the Puma was capable of carrying 16 passengers, 12 fully equipped troops, or two tonnes of cargo, either carried internally, as an underslung load, or via a combination of the two. 

An incredibly versatile and reliable helicopter, the latest variant of this magnificent aircraft remains in service with the RAF, some 53 years since those first machines arrived at RAF Odiham.