87 Helicopter Flying School SAAF

29.1000°S 26.3069°E / -29.1000; 26.3069

87 Helicopter Flying School
Atlas Oryx
Active	1 January 1973[1] – Present
Country	South Africa
Branch	South African Air Force
Role	Helicopter flight training
Current base	AFB Bloemspruit, Bloemfontein[2] (plus a satellite base at Dragon Peaks Mountain Resort, Drakensberg)
Motto(s)	Docemus (We Teach)[1]
Current Aircraft	Atlas Oryx, BK 117, A109[1]
Aircraft flown
Helicopter	Previously flown:[1] Aérospatiale Alouette II, Aérospatiale Alouette III

87 Helicopter Flying School is a unit of the South African Air Force. It is a helicopter flight training school.

The Helicopter Conversion Unit was established at Ysterplaat on 1 February 1968[2] to fulfill the helicopter pilot and flight engineers training role. The present unit was formed on 9 April 1968 by redesignating Training Flight, 17 Squadron at AFB Ysterplaat.[1] The unit, equipped with Alouette II and III's,[1] took over responsible for Helicopter Conversion Training of SAAF pilots and training of Flight Engineers for the SAAF.[1]

The Helicopter Conversion Unit became an autonomous unit in 1971 and in January 1973[1] the units name changed to 87 Advanced Flying School. In 1973 the Alouette II's were retired and transferred to the Rhodesian Air Force. "B" Flight, 16 Squadron, also stationed at AFB Ysterplaat, took responsibility for advanced helicopter training from 16 September 1974 to January 1975.[1]