First contracts for Russian-assembled AW139s

The first Russian-assembled AgustaWestland AW139 medium twin helicopter will be delivered in June 2013, representatives of the Anglo-Italian company told Show Observer at HeliRussia 2013. The undisclosed private customer has ordered two of the type; the second delivery is expected to follow in early autumn. Both helicopters will be VIP-configured and will have the Full Ice Protection System (FIPS) installed for all-weather operations.

On the first day of the exhibition, the AgustaWestland/Russian Helicopters joint venture HeliVert signed another contract with the Russian AgustaWestland dealership Exclases Holdings for five Russian-assembled AW139, which includes a mix of VIP and utility-configured helicopters.

The AW139 assembly line was built from scratch in Tomilino outside Moscow under the HeliVert agreement of November 2008. HeliVert flew its first AW139 in December 2012. Two airframes have been assembled to date. It will take the factory five years to reach the design annual output of 20 aircraft.

The Tomilino AW139s will be marketed in Russia and the CIS. Several foreign-built helicopters of this type are already operated in Russia, with more than 20 orders in total.