PETER LA FRANCHI / CANBERRA
Planned multirole helicopter to be offered for trooplift and could replace Black Hawks
AgustaWestland has unveiled preliminary planning for a new 6.8t multirole helicopter, with the Australian Defence Force (ADF) targeted as launch customer.
The new helicopter, designated the A149, would draw on technology developed for the A139 series, but would feature a new fuselage and drive train. Civil and military versions are proposed.
AgustaWestland says the new helicopter would target Bell UH-1Y, Huey II and 412 and Eurocopter EC765 operators. The company says there is a market for 2,000 helicopters in this class outside the USA, in which the A149 could potentially secure 400 sales.
The A149 has been offered to the Australian Department of Defence as part of the AgustaWestland/BAE Systems Australia bid for the Air 9000 requirement for additional trooplift helicopters and the possible replacement of 36 Army Sikorsky S-70A-9 Black Hawks.
The bid is baselined on the EH101, with options also provided on A109s and A119s to meet requirements for replacement training and utility helicopters in later phases of the project.
AgustaWestland business group director Ron Jones says that planning for the A149 has been under way for several years, and the decision to link its launch to the Australian Air 9000 programme has been "a logical coming together".
However, development will proceed if the company is unsuccessful in the Air 9000 competition. "We now have agreement to launch the product and we are looking for partners," Jones says.
Australian participation in the A149 development programme would focus on structural design and development of the cabin and tailboom sections, and integration of the aircraft mission systems.
The A149 is understood to have been offered as part of options for a mixed fleet replacement for the S-70A-9s and as a long-term replacement for the Royal Australian Navy's S-70B-2s.
The Air 9000 programme seeks to rationalise the entire ADF helicopter fleet down from nine different aircraft types to a maximum of five, and set up a long-term strategic partnership with a single prime contractor for their support and upgrade. Tenders closed in mid-August with the Australian government seeking to announce a source selection before year-end.
The project is also being separately competed for by Eurocopter and Sikorsky.
Source: Flight International
