The AgustaWestland AW139, now known as the Leonardo AW139, is a 15-seat medium-sized twin-engined helicopter developed and produced by the Italian helicopter manufacturer AgustaWestland, now part of Leonardo. It is marketed at several different roles, including VIP/corporate transport, military use, offshore transport, firefighting, law enforcement, search and rescue, emergency medical service, disaster relief, and maritime patrol."US Corporate Operator Signs Contract For Two AW139 Helicopters." AgustaWestland, 18 June 2014.
The AW139 was designed jointly by the Italian helicopter manufacturer Agusta and the American company Bell Helicopters. It was marketed as the Agusta-Bell AB139, but was redesignated as the AW139 after Bell withdrew from the project. In addition to AgustaWestland's manufacturing facilities in Italy and the United States, other companies are involved in the programme, such as the Polish manufacturer PZL-Świdnik, which has produced hundreds of AW139 airframes, and HeliVert, a joint venture between AgustaWestland and Russian Helicopters, which has established a production line inside Russia for the type. Having performed its maiden flight on 3 February 2001, the AW139 entered revenue service in 2003 and quickly proved itself to be a commercial success.
Many AW139 customers have been in the civilian sector. Large fleets have been obtained by operators such as CHC Helicopter, Gulf Helicopters, and Weststar Aviation. Its performance has made it popular amongst operators supporting the offshore oil and gas industry. A dedicated militarised model, the AW139M, was developed by AgustaWestland. It was first procured by the Italian Air Force. Other military operators include the United States Air Force, which operates the MH-139 Grey Wolf model. The Japanese business Mitsui Bussan Aerospace has obtained an exclusive distribution agreement for the AW139 in Japan. Over 1,200 rotorcraft had been produced by July 2024. The AW139 has been developed into the AW149, an enlarged medium-lift military orientated rotorcraft.
Development Origins
In 1997, the Italian helicopter manufacturer Agusta launched a programme to develop a replacement for the Bell Huey family of helicopters, which had been built in very large numbers by Bell Helicopter and under license by Agusta. A potential market of 900 aircraft was predicted. In 1998, Bell and Agusta entered into an agreement setting up a joint venture, Bell/Agusta Aerospace Company (BAAC), to develop two aircraft: a conventional helicopter and a tiltrotor aircraft. These became the Bell/Agusta AB139 and Bell/Agusta BA609 respectively.Niccoli 2001, p. 158. Bell was to be the leading partner for the development of the BA609 while Agusta would be the lead partner for the AB139. It was intended for production, sales, and support to be shared.Bower, Ron. "The AB139: Filling The Market Gap." Rotor&Wing, 1 May 2005.
In September 2000, the first order was placed by Bristow Helicopters. The first preproduction helicopter flew on 3 February 2001 at Vergiate in Italy,Jackson 2003, p. 227.Niccoli 2001, p. 163. with two further AW139s participating in flying trials. The first production AW139 made its first flight on 24 June 2002.Jackson 2003, p. 31. European JAA certification was received in June 2003, and its FAA type certificate followed in December 2004. By May 2005, the AW139 had received in excess of 100 orders worldwide. In the US, the type was marketed under the designation US139, and was entered into the US Army's Light Utility Helicopter competition."Mission-Configured US139 Demonstrates Ability To Meet And Exceed Requirements." AgustaWestland, 21 December 2005. A key market for the AW139 was the oil and gas industry, which required helicopters of increased endurance for offshore operations.Kay, Marcia Hillary. "40 Years Retrospective: It's Been a Wild Ride" Rotor & Wing, August 2007. Accessed: 8 June 2014. Archived on 8 June 2014. In 2005, AgustaWestland bought out Bell's 25% share in the program and all of its rights to the AW139 for $95 million.
In April 2008, AgustaWestland revealed that it was in the process of certifying an increase in the AW139's max gross weight to 14,991 lb (6,800 kg), to better compete in long-range markets served by helicopters such as the larger Sikorsky S-92 and Eurocopter EC225.McKenna, Thomas. "Rotorcraft Report: AgustaWestland Bolsters AW139, Racks Up Orders." Rotor&Wing, 1 April 2008. In 2007, a second production line at the United States AgustaWestland Aerospace plant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was established. The Philadelphia plant produced its 200th AW139 in September 2014, at which point U.S. production was intended to reach 40 units per year in the near future."AgustaWestland Philadelphia Delivers 200th AW139." aviation.ca, 18 September 2014. By 2011, AgustaWestland was producing 90 AW139s per year. 9.5% of the company's overall revenue in 2010 was attributed to the type.Osborne, Tony. "PAS 2011: AW139 has 'changed' AgustaWestland's behaviour". Rotorhub. Shephard Media. 20 June 2011. Retrieved 11 November 2012. By 2013, a combined total of 720 AW139s had been sold to over 200 operators in 60 countries.
Further development
In 2011, a military-configured variant, the AW139M, was revealed by AgustaWestland. It was promoted at the US market, including for the U.S. Air Force's Common Vertical Lift Support Program. The AW139M is equipped with a high definition forward-looking infrared (FLIR), self-protection system, heavy-duty landing gear, and has low thermal and acoustic signatures. A significant proportion of the equipment is sourced from American manufacturers. Options offered include an external stores system including various armaments, armoured seats, self-sealing fuel tanks, and a full ice protection system for all-weather operations."AgustaWestland Debuts the AW139M Helicopter." AgustaWestland, 17 February 2011.
The AW139 serves as the basis for AgustaWestland's wider business strategy, under which it aims to produce a standardised family of helicopters with common design features. The sharing of components and design philosophies is intended to simplify maintenance and training for operators. Commonality also lowers the production costs. The AW139 was the first of this group, and as of 2014, it was to be joined by the larger AW149 and AW189, aimed at military and civilian customers respectively. Advances made in the development of new models are intended to be transferable onto existing family members, decreasing the cost of future upgrades for the AW139.Head, Elan. "Upward Trend." Vertical, 22 January 2014.
In June 2010, it was announced that AgustaWestland and Rostvertol would build a manufacturing plant in Tomilino, Moscow Region, where it was initially planned to produce AW139s by 2012. HeliVert, a joint venture between AgustaWestland and Rostvertol, began domestic production of the AW139 in 2012, at which point it was planned that between 15 and 20 helicopters would be produced per year. The first AW139 to be assembled in Russia made its first flight in December 2012."Exclases Russia buys three corporate AW139s from HeliVert." Vertical, 17 September 2014. In January 2013, the Russian Defense Ministry was reportedly considering placing an order for seven AW139s."Russia to Buy 7 AW139 Helicopters." RIA Novosti, 28 January 2013. In January 2014, HeliVert received a Certificate of Approval from the Aviation Register of the Interstate Aviation Committee to begin production of commercial AW139s."HeliVert gets approval for production of commercial AW139." corporatejetinvestor.com, 30 January 2014. In September 2014, a certificate was granted to perform comprehensive maintenance and servicing of the type at the Tomilino facility."HeliVert receives approval to work on AW139s in Russia." Vertical, 15 September 2014.
During 2015, AgustaWestland unveiled an AW139 model with an increased gross weight of seven tonnes, enabling a range of 305 km while carrying 12 passengers. Existing AW139s can be rebuilt to the newer heavy-weight model. This heavier airframe comes at the expense of decreased hot and high performance.Turnbull, Grant. "AgustaWestland unveils heavier AW139". Rotorhub, Shephard Media. 3 March 2015. Retrieved 9 March 2015. In November 2015, AgustaWestland demonstrated a 60-minute "run-dry" test (no oil) of an AW139's main gearbox, 30 minutes greater than any other certified rotorcraft at the time.
Design
The AW139 is a conventional twin-engine multi-role helicopter. It has a five-bladed fully articulated main rotor with a titanium hub and composite blades and a four-bladed articulated tail rotor. It is fitted with retractable tricycle landing gear, the two aft wheels retracting into external sponsons which are also used to house emergency equipment. It is flown by a crew of two pilots, with up to 15 passengers accommodated in three rows of five. The AW139 had been aimed at a vacant niche in the market, sitting below larger types such as the Eurocopter AS332 Super Puma and Sikorsky S-92, and above smaller ones like the Bell 412 and Eurocopter EC155. Rotor & Wing has described the AW139's flying attitude as 'docile and predictable'.
The AW139 is powered by two FADEC-controlled Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6C turboshaft engines. The FADEC system seamlessly adjusts the engines for pilot convenience and passenger comfort, and can automatically handle a single-engine failure without noticeable deviation.Niccoli 2001, pp. 158–159, 162. It was constructed with maintenance requirements in mind. Critical systems can be readily accessed, where possible the number of parts has been reduced, and many components have been designed for an extended lifecycle. A Health and Usage Monitoring System (HUMS) is equipped."Swedish Maritime Administration Orders Seven AW139 Helicopters for Search and Rescue." Shipping & Marine, 4 February 2013. More than a thousand customizable items of equipment can be configured per customer demand, including auxiliary fuel tanks, rescue hoists, cargo hooks, search and weather radar, ice protection systems, external cameras and searchlights, and seating arrangements.
The AW139 cockpit is based on the modular Honeywell Primus EPIC avionics system incorporating a four LCD screen glass cockpit. Although an option on early models, most aircraft include a four-axis autopilot, which allows higher levels of automation and safety and enables advanced functions such as auto-hover. This level of automation has allowed certification for single-pilot operations under instrument flight rules conditions (SPIFR), and the cockpit can optionally be modified for compatibility with night vision goggles. The latest version of the Primus EPIC avionics systems includes a synthetic vision system. Pilot training for the type is available via advanced Level D Full Flight Simulators. The AW139 has "the largest cabin in its class", containing up to 15 passengers or four litters and accompanying medics. An additional baggage compartment is used to stow equipment to keep the main cabin clear for use.