– Important announcements by Leonardo during the Heli-Expo 2023 show (Atlanta, 7-9 March) with the signing of contracts and a collaboration agreement for the US market for the new generation AW09 single-engine helicopter, of which the latest developments were presented.
Leonardo has signed preliminary contracts for over 50 units with various customers around the world: Aero Service Representação in Brazil, Synerjet Latina SA in Colombia, Peru and Chile, Helitech Asia in Southeast Asia, Safomar in South Africa, Diskopsa for Panama and Guatemala, Heliflite in Oceania and Aero Facility in Japan.
In addition, the Company has also signed an important agreement with Metro Aviation, one of the largest private operators and providers of ambulance services in the USA. The agreement aims to support the introduction and positioning of the AW09 in the country, benefiting from the recognized experience and capabilities in helicopter interior and certification development, service delivery and training.
Gian Piero Cutillo, Leonardo Helicopters MD, said “What we announced at Heli-Expo is the culmination of three years of work, thanks to which the AW09 has benefited from considerable improvements that have allowed it to reach its final configuration with the level of competitiveness expected by the market. Without a doubt, the AW09 is getting very positive responses from all over the world and operators have welcomed this model due to its unmatched characteristics and multi-role capabilities which represent a significant evolution over existing helicopters in this category. The preliminary contracts just signed are a clear demonstration of this. Furthermore, combining our industrial capabilities and Metro Aviation's broad and recognized experience in operations and support further strengthens the value of the AW09, capable of providing operators with superior mission capabilities in a key market for single-engine aircraft such as the American one”.
The AW09 is for Leonardo one of the stars of the Company's participation in Heli-Expo 2023. The 1:1 scale mock-up of the new generation helicopter in its final configuration is present in the Leonardo exhibition area, arousing great interest in the sector. Acquired three years ago by Leonardo, the AW09 'long light single' class helicopter fits perfectly into the company's range, introducing a totally new design to support long-term competitiveness in its weight category. One of the most recent evolutions is represented by the decision to integrate the Arriel 2K engine on the helicopter, the most modern of the engines of this type made by Safran Helicopter Engines, in line with the objectives of high technical assistance capacity and reliability.
