AgustaWestland AW169
| AW169 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| AW169 at Paris Airshow 2013 | |
| Role | Helicopter |
| Manufacturer | Leonardo, formerly AgustaWestland |
| First flight | 10 May 2012 |
| Introduction | 2015 |
| Status | Active service |
| Produced | 2015-present |
| Unit cost |
$8.5 million
|
The AgustaWestland AW169 is a twin-engine, 10-seat helicopter developed and manufactured by the Leonardo’s Helicopter Division (formerly AgustaWestland, merged into Finmeccanica since 2016). It was designed to utilise a high degree of commonality with the larger AgustaWestland AW139 and AgustaWestland AW189.
On 19 July 2010, AgustaWestland formally announced that the AW169 was under development at the Farnborough International Air Show. According to AgustaWestland, the 4.5 ton AW169 is a light-intermediate twin engine rotorcraft intended for a range of utility operations; to lower prospective operational costs, a decision was made early on for the AW169 to share a large level of commonality across both components and the cockpit configuration with the larger AgustaWestland AW139. In 2011, the British Government provided a $33 million loan to AgustaWestland for the AW169 development program. In 2012, the European Union approved a 19-year €272 million zero‑interest loan from the Italian government to AgustaWestland to finance the development of the AW169; industrial research is 40% of the total, and experimental development is 60%, while the aid element is €94 million.
On 10 May 2012, the first prototype of the type conducted its first flight. The testing program involved a total of four prototypes; the second and third AW169s joined the flight test program later on in 2012, and the fourth in 2013. AgustaWestland had initially anticipated that the AW169 would receive flight certification in 2014, and had planned for production AW169 aircraft to enter service by 2015. On 15 July 2015, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued its certification for the AW169.
In November 2015, a prototype was dispatched to various locations in California, United States, for high and low altitude flight tests in support of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification. In February 2016, the AW169 received FAA certification, enabling deliveries of the type to occur later that year.
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