 |
| The Austrian Military Receives an Additional 18 AW169M Helicopters From Italy |
Vienna - Italian aerospace and defense company Leonardo announced that the Austrian Armed Forces have purchased another AW169M LUH (light utility helicopter) helicopter. A contract worth 304 million euros for the purchase of an additional 18 helicopters was signed in December 2022, following the amendments to the Italy-Austria Government-to-Government (G2G) Agreement.
This fact brings the total number of AW169M LUHs for the Austrian Armed Forces to 36 helicopters (12 AW169B versions and 24 AW169MA versions). The AW169 LUH was purchased to replace the role of the Alouette III light helicopter fleet which had been in use since the 1960s.
Read Also : First Flight Success, Leonardo AW249 Will Replace A129 Mangusta As Italian Army Helicopter
The AW169M LUH helicopter can reliably perform a variety of missions, including troop transportation, combat operations, disaster relief and emergency response, firefighting, mountain rescue and medevac.
As for its characteristics, the AW169M can be manned by 1 or 2 pilots and accommodates 8 to 12 passengers, plus 250 kg of carry-on baggage. In the medevac role, the helicopter can carry 1 stretcher plus 7 medics or 2 stretchers plus 5 medics.
The AW169 LUH is equipped with two Pratt & Whitney PW210A turboshaft engines each producing 1,000 shp. The maximum flight speed is 306 km/h and the operating range is 820 km.