25 years of the AgustaWestland AW139 multi-purpose helicopter

February 3 marked the 25th anniversary of the AW139 multi-purpose helicopter, created by the British-Italian company AgustaWestland (now part of the transnational concern Leonardo-Finmeccanica). On that day in 2001, its first prototype took to the skies at the factory airfield in the Italian village of Casina Costa (Lombardy region).

The machine was equipped with the most advanced solutions available at the time. In particular, it was equipped with digital avionics with a “glass” cockpit, and the five blades of the main rotor were made of a composite “sandwich” material, which made it possible to obtain a lightweight structure with a significant service life.

Large-scale production began in 2002 and continues to this day. Final assembly takes place not only in Italy but also in Philadelphia (USA) since 2007. In total, by the end of 2025, more than 1,200 units had been built in 13 main variants.

The AW139 is equipped with two Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6C turboshaft engines with a power of 1,530 hp each. The helicopter is 16.65 m long, has a main rotor diameter of 13.8 m, a maximum take-off weight of 7 t, a maximum speed of 310 km/h, and a maximum range of 1,060 km. It can carry up to 15 passengers or up to 3 tons of cargo.

The Irish Air Corps was the first operator of the AW139, and in civil aviation, the Canadian company CHC Helicopter was the first to use these machines. In total, the AW139 has been purchased by operators in more than 50 countries, including Australia, Algeria, Angola, Brazil, Great Britain, Indonesia, Spain, Italy, China, Colombia, Morocco, the Netherlands, the United States, and Japan.

AW139 helicopters are used to perform a wide range of tasks typical for machines of this class. First and foremost, this includes transporting various cargoes and passengers to hard-to-reach places, such as offshore oil platforms. These helicopters have proven themselves very well in search and rescue and medical transport missions. Among other things, it is worth noting their use as maritime patrols, especially in the fight against drug trafficking.