Aerospatiale developed the Dauphin as a replacement for their older Alouette III helicopters in both civil and military service, with the prototype flying in 1972. By the time that the original single-engine version ( SA 360 ) had entered production, a twin-engine version had already flown which was to form the basis for the SA 365.

In the early 1980s, the United States Coast Guard selected the SA 366G Dauphin (with the H-65 Dolphin DoD designation) to fill a need for a new air-sea rescue helicopter. In order to comply with US law, however, the majority of the helicopters' value had to be produced locally, and this resulted in the substitution of Avco Lycoming engines in place of the original Turboméca units, amongst other engineering changes.

Dauphine Panel

AS 565 Panther

First Flight : SA 365A June 2, 1972
Crew / Load: 2 up to 13 (Depending the mission) or 1600 Kg with sling

AS 365 N2 :
Primary Mission: SAR (Search and Rescue)
Engines: 2 * 733 shp Turbomeca Arriel 1C2 Turbine engines
Top Speed (Vne): 296 km/h
Cruise Speed: 279 km/h
Rate of climb: 6 m/s
Range: 880 km
Service Ceiling: 3700 m
Hover Ceiling OGE: 1200 m
Weight: Empty: 2265 kg -- Max: 4250