Guimbal Cabri G2

Updated: October 2026 – At the edge of a small airfield, a helicopter hovers just above the grass. It is hardly bigger than a compact car, but something looks different from the usual training helicopter: three blades turn on top, and at the back there is no open tail rotor, just a round tunnel in the fin. That is very likely a Guimbal Cabri G2. The two-seater from the south of France has won itself a place next to the Robinson R22 at many European flight schools in recent years. Here you will learn who is behind the Cabri, what makes it technically special, why flight schools like it and how to recognize it at first glance.

What is the Guimbal Cabri G2?

The Cabri G2 is a two-seat light helicopter with a piston engine. It is built by Hélicoptères Guimbal, an independent family company based at Aix-en-Provence airfield in the Les Milles district, not far from Marseille Provence Airport. The manufacturer confidently calls its product “the little big helicopter” – a small helicopter with big-helicopter technology.

Its role is clear: the Cabri is first and foremost a training helicopter. A 2015 report put the share of aircraft sold for training at around 70 percent; the French-language Wikipedia speaks of about three quarters flight schools among buyers for 2019. Beyond that, Cabris fly with private pilots, with smaller charter and work operators and, in some cases, with government agencies that use them for basic training.

Technically, the Cabri stands out. While its classic competitor, the Robinson R22, relies on a light two-blade rotor and an open tube frame, the Cabri combines a three-blade main rotor, a Fenestron tail rotor and a composite fuselage. It is certified under the CS-27 airworthiness code, which applies to small rotorcraft and sets strict requirements, for example on crash safety.

History: from private project to production helicopter

Behind the Cabri stands Bruno Guimbal, an engineer who worked on helicopters at Aérospatiale and later at Eurocopter – today’s Airbus Helicopters. In the 1980s he began designing a small two-seater privately. According to the manufacturer, the project was meant to show that solutions from the next generation of large helicopters could also be implemented in the smallest format.

The first prototype flew in April 1992. Aérospatiale and Eurocopter supported the development for a time but decided against certifying and building it themselves. So Guimbal took matters into his own hands: in 2000 he founded Hélicoptères Guimbal to bring the type to production readiness. According to company information, he still holds the majority of the company today.

In the following years the Cabri drew attention with records. As early as 1996 the prototype set a distance record for helicopters under 500 kilograms. In 2005, according to the manufacturer, three world records in its class followed, including altitude and climb records. In March 2005 the first aircraft in production configuration also flew.

The decisive step came in December 2007: the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued the type certificate. For a small piston helicopter, certification under the demanding CS-27 rules was a novelty. On September 19, 2008, the first production aircraft went to the French flight school iXAir, and in the same year Guimbal opened a new production hall. The US authority FAA followed in February 2015, opening up the important North American training market.

A side branch of the story leads into unmanned aviation. Drone projects grew out of the Cabri airframe, first with Eurocopter and EADS, later with Airbus Helicopters and Naval Group. The best-known result is the VSR700, an unmanned naval drone whose first autonomous flight took place in 2018, according to Guimbal.

Technology: big helicopter ideas in a small package

Three-blade rotor for smooth flying and autorotation

The main rotor has three composite blades and measures 7.20 meters in diameter. Guimbal stresses that the rotor was designed specifically for training: it stores a lot of momentum, which is meant to make autorotations – the unpowered descent that every helicopter pilot has to practice – more predictable. At the same time, the manufacturer dispenses with calendar-limited components in the rotor, which simplifies maintenance.

Fenestron at the tail

The most striking detail is at the rear: instead of an open tail rotor, a Fenestron is at work, a multi-blade rotor in a round tunnel in the vertical fin. This design is familiar from Airbus Helicopters types such as the H120. The Fenestron is better protected against contact and is considered quieter than a freely turning tail rotor – two plus points for a helicopter that students and instructors constantly walk around on the ground.

Fuselage and crash safety

The fuselage is a shell of carbon-fiber composite. The seats are designed to absorb energy; according to the manufacturer, occupants survive a vertical impact of around 2,000 feet per minute in certified tests, which corresponds roughly to a free fall from five meters. The 170-liter tank is crash-resistant. Guimbal presents the Cabri as the only piston helicopter certified under CS-27 and its US counterpart FAR 27 – that is a manufacturer claim, but it is frequently cited as a central selling point.

Engine and performance

The Cabri is powered by a Lycoming O-360, an air-cooled four-cylinder horizontally opposed engine that many know from light aircraft. In the Cabri the engine is derated and delivers about 145 hp continuous power. According to Guimbal, that is enough for a cruise speed of about 100 knots, up to 4.5 hours of endurance and a useful load of 270 kilograms. As fuel, the manufacturer lists Avgas 100LL, UL91 and, in Europe, high-quality automotive gasoline.

In the cockpit, instructor and student sit side by side with dual controls. Instead of a wall of round gauges, the Cabri uses an electronic display system that bundles the most important engine and rotor data and is meant to relieve the pilot. If you would like to get into a helicopter cockpit yourself, the guide Becoming a helicopter pilot shows the way to the license.

How to recognize the Cabri G2 in three steps

You do not need a long telephoto lens to identify it. Three observations are enough, and the first works even when the helicopter is still far away.

As always, the final confirmation comes from the registration. With it you look the aircraft up in the aircraft register or in a tracking service. How registrations are structured in Germany and why helicopters start with D-H is explained in the article on German registrations and weight classes; for the UK, where an especially large number of Cabris fly, the guide to British G- registrations helps.

Cabri G2, Robinson R22 or H120?

Most mix-ups happen with the Robinsons and – because of the Fenestron – with the turbine helicopter H120. The finder helps you narrow it down.

Feature	Cabri G2	Robinson R22	Robinson R44
Main rotor blades	3	2	2
Tail rotor	Fenestron	open, 2 blades	open, 2 blades
Seats	2	2	4
Fuselage	composite shell, closed	cabin plus visible tube frame	cabin plus partly visible frame
Powerplant	Lycoming O-360	Lycoming O-360	Lycoming O-540

You will find more on the Robinsons on the pages for the R44 and the turbine-powered R66. If you want to go deeper into identifying rotorcraft, read the guide Identifying helicopter types.

Distribution: where the Cabri flies

The Cabri is a European product and is correspondingly well represented in Europe. The United Kingdom is one of the most important markets; in May 2017 the country had the largest national Cabri fleet, with 28 aircraft. In France, the manufacturer’s home, numerous examples also fly with flight schools and private operators.

For maintenance and training, Guimbal maintains a network of partner companies in numerous European countries, including German-speaking regions. Outside Europe, since FAA certification the Cabri has also found customers in North America and Asia, including training operations, individual airlines for pilot training and some armed forces.

In Germany the Cabri is mainly seen at regional airfields with helicopter schools. There the aircraft typically fly traffic patterns, practice hovering over a marked area or train autorotations down to just above the ground. Which schools currently use Cabris changes – it is worth checking the websites of regional helicopter schools or the registration database before a tour.

Place	Chance of success	Why
Regional airfields with a helicopter school	high	Typical location for training flights
Airfield festivals and fly-ins	medium	Private owners and schools show their aircraft
Large commercial airports	low	Training usually takes place at smaller fields
United Kingdom and France	high	Especially large Cabri fleets

Fixed spotter locations for helicopter schools are rare. Many fields do have terraces, restaurants or public paths along the fence from which you can watch the training well. Good opportunities are also offered by airfield festivals in Germany, where training helicopters are often displayed on the ground. How to get close to helicopters at all is covered in the guide Spotting helicopters.

Finding the Cabri on the flight tracker

Small training helicopters are not always visible on tracking services. Whether a Cabri shows up depends on whether it flies with a suitable transponder and whether there are receivers in the area that pick up low-flying aircraft. Low-altitude traffic patterns often fall through the net. If you have the registration, a targeted search is still worthwhile – the article Finding helicopters on the flight tracker offers tips.

It also helps to keep an eye on the flight schools themselves. Many publish introductory flights, course starts or events. Especially on weekends with good weather, there is often a lot going on at training fields.

Photo tips for the Cabri

Helicopters are a photo topic of their own, and the Cabri brings a few particularities.

You can calculate in advance when the light suits your spot; how to do that is explained in the guide Planning sun position for your photo spot. If you are traveling in France, for example in Provence near the manufacturer’s plant, read the article on photographing at French airports beforehand.

Common mix-ups and how to rule them out

You get a glimpse into the history of rotorcraft at the Helicopter Museum Bückeburg, where you can follow the development from the early helicopter to modern types. And if you are just starting out with spotting: the introduction Plane spotting for beginners gets you on course quickly.

Conclusion

The Cabri G2 is proof that a small helicopter does not have to be built on a 1970s pattern. Bruno Guimbal transferred the three-blade rotor, Fenestron and composite fuselage from the world of large helicopters into a two-seater and thus created a real alternative to the Robinson R22. For spotters it is rewarding: three blades and the Fenestron make identification easy, and at fields with a helicopter school it is often in the air for hours.