Aircrafttotal Encyclopedia


An AW139 with Spain's Maritime Safety and Rescue agency
Role	Medium-lift SAR/utility helicopter
National origin	Italy
Manufacturer	AgustaWestland Leonardo
First flight	3 February 2001
Introduction	2003
Status	In production
Primary users	Italian Air Force CHC Helicopter Irish Air Corps United Arab Emirates Air Force
Produced	2001–present
Number built	1100+ as of January 2021
Developed into	AgustaWestland AW149

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.

The AgustaWestland AW139, now known as the Leonardo AW139, is a 15-seat medium-sized twin-engined helicopter developed and produced by the Anglo-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

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. 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

Aeromacchi Leonardo

AgustaWestland (now Leonardo)
AgustaWestland AW139 Medium-lift SAR/utility

General Info

Crew: one or two
Capacity: up to 15 passengers, depending on configuration
Length: 16.66 m (54 ft 8 in)
Width: 2.26 m (10 ft 0 in)
Height: 4.98 m (16 ft 4 in)

Powerplant

Gross weight: 6,400 kg (14,110 lb) ; 7,000 kg (15,000 lb) for 7 t version Fuel capacity: 1568 liter (414 USgal) Powerplant: 2 × Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6C-67C turboshaft engine , (1,531 hp) each Main rotor diameter: 13.80 m

Performance

Maximum speed: 310 km/h
Cruise speed: 306 km/h
Range: 1,061 km
Endurance: 5 hours 13 minutes
Service ceiling: 6,096 m

Related development

- Airbus Helicopters H160
- Airbus Helicopters H175
- Kamov Ka-60
- TAI T625
- Bell 525 (In Development) Relentless

Special Links Aeromacchi Leonardo

Links to Youtube & Others

In September 2018, the United States Air Force (USAF) announced that the MH-139, an AW139 variant, was the winner of a competition to replace the Vietnam-era Bell UH-1Ns. The service will buy up to 84 MH-139s

AgustaWestland
AgustaWestland AW139

The multi-role AW139M, the military version of the AW139, meets the demand of military and government missions.

Youtube Link

The multi-role AW139M, the military version of the AW139, meets the demand of military and government missions.

Leonardo / AgustaWestland AW139 Medium-lift SAR/utility