Italian Air Force receives first HH-139B helicopter
Leonardo announced on 3 December the recent delivery of the first HH-139B twin engine helicopter to the Italian Air Force.
A customised variant of the AW139 platform, the aircraft is the first of 17 HH-139Bs and deliveries are expected to be completed by 2021.
The helicopter will be operated by the Italian Air Force’s 15th Wing which is in charge of SAR duties and supports the country in the event of disaster relief operations.
The HH-139Bs join an existing fleet of 13 multirole HH-139As and four VH-139As, with the latter used for government transport missions.
Compared to the HH-139A, the 7-tonne HH-139B variant features new electro-optics, new radar, a new rescue hoist and a mission console in the cabin. Core avionics will feature the Phase 8 software release allowing for safer all-weather navigation and mission capabilities.
Each aircraft can be quickly reconfigured from SAR to MEDEVAC or fire-fighting.
According to Leonardo, this latest Italian Air Force programme brings the total number of AW139s chosen by Italian government operators to nearly 80.
As part of our promise to deliver comprehensive coverage to our Defence Insight and Premium News subscribers, our curated defence news content provides the latest industry updates, contract awards and programme milestones.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Air Warfare
-
DSEI 2025: UK launches Project Octopus to deliver thousands of interceptor drones to Ukraine
The programme will work to build and deploy the drones to Ukraine to support its fight against Russia, coming a day after Poland shot down 19 Russian drones in its airspace.
-
DSEI 2025: NATO members evaluate Black Widow UAV as it joins NSPA catalogue
The addition of Red Cat’s Black Widow to NATO’s NSPA catalogue opens the doors for allied forces to more easily procure the AI-enabled drone.
-
DSEI 2025: Deutsche Aircraft takes aim at special mission market with D328MR
The company plans to offer its D328eco commercial aircraft as a multi-role variant, and spoke to Shephard at DSEI 2025 about its ambitions for the future.
-
DSEI 2025: New AR3 EVO puts Tekever’s modularity ambitions under the spotlight
An evolution of the Tekever AR3, the AR3 EVO that broke cover at DSEI incorporates the thousands of incremental evolutions the company has implemented through its spiral development, geared towards delivering a constant stream of improved aircraft to Ukraine.
-
DSEI 2025: Schiebel reveals two weaponised Camcopter UAVs
The new capabilities are based on platforms already in use or in development, and are designed to perform in demanding defence missions.