Leonardo stands ready to deliver the AW149 to meet UK MOD requirements
Author: Jon Lake
Adam Clarke, the Managing Director of Leonardo Helicopters UK told journalists that the last two years have been a busy time for what he called “the Home of British Helicopters – the UK’s only onshore helicopter manufacturer”.
Clarke said that he knew that many were closely following the UK New Medium Helicopter competition. “Suffice to say that Leonardo stands ready to deliver the AW149 military helicopter to meet the UK MOD’s requirements,” he noted.
Clarke pointed out that the AW149 is a well-established product, already in-service globally. He said that the AW149 had been chosen by three different operators during the last five years, including two NATO nations. The aircraft is known to be in service with the Royal Thai Army and Police (five each), and with the Egyptian Air Force (at least 33 aircraft, though this has never been acknowledged by the manufacturer). Poland has ordered 32 aircraft and North Macedonia another four aircraft. Less than two years following contract signature with the Polish MOD, a NATO ally, localised AW149 production is now being undertaken through PZL-Świdnik. What is evidenced through Poland’s purchase is it shows the delivery of aircraft quickly through local industrialization by Leonardo.
“We are not permitted to comment specifically on the ITN and the requirements within. However, we can say that our team is working extremely hard on the bid and we believe that we are in a strong position. For more than five years we have been laser-focused on the delivery of this platform to the UK Armed Forces, ensuring it will be able to quickly go into service with the operator.
“Importantly, while we are confident in the platform and its capabilities, we are equally confident in our economic value proposition to the UK. We will be providing UK-built platforms with substantial design work conducted onshore, securing high-quality jobs and skills and ensuring long-term social value for the UK taxpayer.
“While competitors are offering some level of UK assembly, Leonardo is the only company down-selected in the competition that actually has the skills and infrastructure onshore to provide a ‘Made in Britain’ helicopter to the UK Armed Forces,” he insisted.
Clarke said that the Leonardo Helicopters UK workforce included 430 design-focused engineers, proficient in the 87 skill sets that were essential to high-value helicopter design work. He said that these skills (and facilities) could not be established overnight, but rather required “decades of cultivation, of investment, in our own people and across our supply chain.”
“If we are successful in this competition, the potential prize for the UK is enormous,” Clarke said. “With a new UK-manufactured helicopter, endorsed by our internationally-respected Armed Forces, we could address a global market for 500 medium-sized military helicopters, worth tens of billions in UK exports.”
