AgustaWestland AW139
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| AW139 | |
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| Spanish Maritime Safety Agency AW139SAR, during the Festa al Cel airshow in Barcelona, Spain. | |
| Role | Medium-lift SAR/utility helicopter |
| Manufacturer | AgustaWestland |
| First flight | 3 February 2001 |
| Introduction | 2003 |
| Primary users | CHC Helicopter Irish Air Corps UAE Air Force |
| Number built | 400 |
| Unit cost | $21 million |
| Developed into | AgustaWestland AW149 |
The AgustaWestland AW139 is a 15-seat medium sized twin-engined helicopter manufactured by AgustaWestland. Originally designed and developed jointly by Agusta and Bell Helicopters and marketed as the Agusta-Bell AB139, it was redesignated the AW139 when Bell withdrew from the project. The AW149 is a medium-lift military helicopter being developed as an enlarged version of the AW139.
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[edit] Design and development
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 both by Bell and Agusta, with a potential market of 900 aircraft being predicted. In 1998, Bell and Agusta entered into an agreement, setting up a joint venture, Bell/Agusta Aerospace Company (BAAC) to develop both the Italian helicopter and a tiltrotor aircraft, which became the Bell/Agusta AB139 and Bell/Agusta BA609 respectively.[1]
The AB139 is a conventional layout twin-engined transport helicopter. It has a five-bladed fully articulated main rotor with a titanium hub and composite blades and a four-bladed tail rotor. It is fitted with a retractable tricycle landing gear. It is flown by a crew of two pilots, with up to 15 passengers accommodated in three rows of five. It is powered by two Pratt & Whitney PT6C turboshaft engines.[2]
The helicopter is being marketed for use in a number of roles including Law Enforcement/Emergency Medical Service, Executive Transport, Search and Rescue, Maritime and Offshore Oil Operations.
The first orders were placed by Bristow Helicopters on 26 September 2000. The first AW139 flew on 3 February 2001 at Vergiate in Italy,[3][4] and the first production aircraft on 24 June 2002.[5] The first customer aircraft was delivered in 2003.
The company has orders for over 430 helicopters of which over 200 had been delivered by January 2009. It was a contender in the U.S. Army Light Utility Helicopter Program (2004–2006), but lost to the Eurocopter EC145-based UH-72A Lakota.
In 2007 a second production line at the AgustaWestland Aerospace plant in Philadelphia, United States was established.
At the Farnborough Air Show in 2006, AgustaWestland announced the AW149 as a multi-role battlefield helicopter variant of the AW139.
The Irish Air Corps began taking delivery of its first AW139s in 2007. The type will provide army co-operation capability to the Air Corps. They replace the Aerospatiale Alouette III in service.
In late 2006 it was announced that the Japan Coast Guard had selected the AW139 as the replacement for its fleet of Bell 212 helicopters. Twenty-four AW139s are expected to be delivered, beginning in 2008.
In June 2010, it was announced that Agusta and Rosvertol (Russian Helicopters) would build a plant in Tomilino, Moscow Region, jointly producing AW139s from late 2011.[6]
[edit] Variants
- AB139
- Original Italian-built production aircraft, 54 built.[7]
- AW139
- Designation change from 55th aircraft onwards, built in Italy and the United States.[7]
- AW139 (long nose configuration)
- Long nose variant with increased room for avionics built in both Italy and the United States.[7]
[edit] Notable accidents and incidents
- 3 June 2008, ADA, A6-BBB Abu Dhabi Aviation, UAE. CFIT.
- 25 August 2009, Gulf Helicopters, A7-GHC Doha, Qatar. Tail boom failure on ground.
- 2010 Spanish Maritime Safety Agency AW139 crash: On 21 January 2010, Spanish Maritime Safety Agency AW-139SAR (registration EC-KYR), crashed into the sea close to Almeria. 3 people died.[8]
- 3 July 2010, B-MHJ Hong Kong, ditched into Hong Kong harbour after technical problems.
- 23 February 2011, South Korean Coast Guard AW139 went missing off the southern island of Jeju. 5 people died.[9][10]
- 2 May 2011, Gulf Helicopters, Doha, Qatar, Tail rotor failure on ground.
- 30 June 2011, Kuala Lumpur, Westar Aviation AW139 made a hard landing.
- 17 August 2011, Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau AW139 aircraft went missing into a reservoir in a northern suburb of Beijing (China), with five people aboard.Two confirmed fatalities, two missing.
- August 2011, a Petrobras-charted AW139 helicopter crashed into the Atlantic Ocean, killing all four people on board the aircraft.
[edit] Operators
[edit] Military operators
- Cyprus National Guard - The Cyprus Air Force operates 3 AW139 for the CSAR role
- Irish Air Corps- Operate 6 AW139s
- Lebanese Army - The Lebanese Air Force operates one executive AW139 given as a gift by Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa to be used by the Lebanese president General Michel Suleiman.[11]
- Qatar Emiri Air Force (18 on Order)
- Trinidad & Tobago Air Guard (TTAG) — Ordered 4: 2 received May 2011. Other 2 expected delivery from 2011/2012
[edit] Government operators
- civil protection (5 sur commande)
- Ambulance Service of New South Wales (Wollongong and Bankstown)
- Government of Queensland - EMQ Helicopter Rescue (Brisbane, Townsville and Cairns)
- Cyprus Police - Cyprus Police operates 2 AW139 for the security of external borders, fighting illegal immigration and other crime.
- Estonian Border Guard- Operate 3 AW139s
- Corps of the Port Captaincies - Coast Guard (4 ordered, 3 in service by November 2010)
- Guardia di Finanza
- Korea Coast Guard (delivery 2009)
- Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency: 3 delivered in late 2010[12]
- Sociedad de Salvamento y Seguridad Marítima 9 delivered - 1 crashed
- New Jersey State Police
- Los Angeles City Fire Department
- Maryland State Police[13]
- United States Customs and Border Protection
[edit] Civilian operators
- CHC Helicopter
- Ornge (Ontario Air Ambulance), Ontario, Canada (10 on order for 2010-12 delivery)[14]
- Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society (STARS), Alberta, Canada (2 on order for 2011 delivery)
- Sky Shuttle Helicopters - 6 provide scheduled passenger service between Hong Kong, Macau and China.
- Bel Air Aviation operate three AW139 for offshore work in the North Sea and the Gulf of Finland.[15]
- Copterline, replacing Sikorsky S-76s.
- Heliportugal operates AW139[17]
- Gulf Helicopters - Offshore transport use.
- Saudi Aramco - 14 used for offshore and medical use.[18]
- CHC Scotia, on behalf of HM Coastguard
- Bond Offshore Helicopters - Offshore transport use.
[edit] Specifications AW139 (long nose)
Data from [7]
General characteristics
- Crew: 1 to 2
- Capacity: 15 passengers
- Length: 13.77 m (45 ft 2 in)
- Main rotor diameter: × 13.80 m (45 ft 3 in)
- Width: 3.04 m (10 ft 0 in)
- Height: 3.72 m (12 ft 2 in)
- Main rotor area: 149.57 m2 (1609.97 ft2)
- Empty weight: 3,622 kg (7,985 lb)
- Gross weight: 6,400 kg (14,110 lb)
- Powerplant: 2 × Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6C-67C turboshaft engine, 1,142 kW (1,531 hp) each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 310 km/h (193 mph)
- Range: 1,061 km (573 miles)
- Service ceiling: 6,098 m (20,000 ft)
- Rate of climb: 10.9 m/s (2,140 ft/min)
[edit] See also
- Related development
- Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
- Related lists
[edit] References
- ^ Niccoli 2001, p. 158.
- ^ Niccoli 2001, pp. 158–159, 162.
- ^ Jackson 2003, p. 227.
- ^ Niccoli 2001, p. 163.
- ^ Jackson 2003, p. [31].
- ^ http://www.themoscowtimes.com/business/article/italian-russian-firms-to-build-helicopter-factory/408863.html
- ^ a b c d EASA Type Certicate Data Sheet
- ^ Interim statement A002/2010 - Accident involving an AgustaWestland AW139, registration EC-KYR, operated by INAER, off the Almeria coast, on 21 January 2010, at 19:16 UTC.
- ^ http://www.allheadlinenews.com/briefs/articles/90036132?Rescue%20operation%20underway%20for%20missing%20South%20Korean%20maritime%20helicopter
- ^ http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2932713
- ^ Mitilian, Vatche. "News". The Independent Guide To The Lebanese Air Force. http://lebaneseairforce.info/news.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
- ^ "Malaysia maritime agency receives three AW139 helicopters". http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/12/14/350863/malaysia-maritime-agency-receives-three-aw139-helicopters.html. Retrieved 2010-12-19.
- ^ AgustaWestland Awarded Contract by the Maryland State Police Aviation Command
- ^ "Ornge and Canadian Helicopters Income Fund Announce Agreement in Principle" (PDF) (Press release). Ornge. 2008-09-03. http://www.ornge.ca/CHLOrngefinalrelease2.pdf. Retrieved 2009-08-20.
- ^ [1]
- ^ Copterline - Etusivu
- ^ http://www.heliportugal.pt/#/pt/frota/ptaw139
- ^ [2]
- Jackson, Paul. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 2003–2004. Coulsdon, UK: Jane's Defence Data, 2003. ISBN 0 7106 2537 5.
- Niccoli, Riccardo. "The Bell Agusta AB 139". Air International, September 2001, Vol 61 No 3. ISSN 0306-5634. pp. 158–163.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: AgustaWestland AW139 |
- AgustaWestland AW139 page
- AW139 Specs & Photo on flugzeuginfo.net
- European Aviation Safety Agency Type Certificate Data Sheet
- Federal Aviation Authority Type Certificate Data Sheet
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