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The present work has been performed in the context of the European H2020 project increased SAfety and Robust certification for ditching of Aircrafts and Helicopters (SARAH) dedicated to improving the safety during aircraft ditching, together with a better understanding of the physics involved during those crucial events. Both numerical and experimental aspects are explored during this project. The present study focuses on the application of the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method to the simulation of helicopter ditching, as this method has proved to be particularly adapted to free surface impact cases. Simulations are performed for three different impact configurations, for which the numerical solutions are compared with the experimental results (forces and kinematics) obtained at the wave basin of Ecole Centrale Nantes on a mock-up shape provided by Airbus Helicopters. Elements of sensitivity analysis are also provided when needed, to assess the role of some parameters involved in the helicopter behavior and the fluid pressure forces exerted during the impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]