Malaysian Rescue Service Orders Two AW139s / Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department Orders Two AW139s

Malaysian Rescue Service Orders Two AW139s / Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department Orders Two AW139s

(NSI News Source Info) January 27, 2009: AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, is pleased to announce that the Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) has ordered two AW139 medium twin engine helicopters. These aircraft will be used to perform fire fighting, search and rescue, land reconnaissance and general support duties.

The AgustaWestland AW139 is a 15-seat medium sized twin-engined helicopter manufactured by AgustaWestland. Originally designed and developed jointly by Agusta and Bell Helicopters and marketed as the Agusta-Bell AB139, Bell withdrew from the project, which was then renamed the AW139. The AgustaWestland AW149 is a medium-lift military helicopter being developed by AgustaWestland as an enlarged version of the AW139.

The contract also includes conversion training for aircrew and maintenance staff which will be undertaken prior to delivery of the aircraft in the first half of 2010.

The Bomba order for the AW139 follows the order placed by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency for three aircraft plus options in October 2008. The AW139s will supplement the two AgustaWestland AW109 Power helicopters that have been successfully operating with the Bomba since 2004.

The AW139, a new generation medium twin-turbine helicopter that has set new standards in the market, offers unmatched performance and safety levels and has the largest cabin in its class. State-of-the-art mission equipment and outstanding performance features enable the AW139 to accomplish the most demanding operations in the harshest weather and environmental conditions.

Thanks to its powerful engines, each rated at 1252 kW (1679 shp) for take-off, the AW139 is perfectly suited to carry out demanding missions in the hot and high climatic conditions experienced in Malaysia.

This order marks further success for the AW139 in the fire fighting market with orders having already been placed by the Los Angeles City Fire Department and the Gangwon Fire Department of Korea. The order book for the AW139 has now passed 430 aircraft with orders from over 100 customers located in over 40 countries.

Over 200 AW139s have now been delivered and are in service performing many applications including SAR, air ambulance, fire fighting, offshore transport, VIP/corporate transport, law enforcement, scheduled passenger transport and utility transport.

AgustaWestland Malaysia Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned subsidiary of AgustaWestland, continues to play a major role in the Malaysian helicopter market expanding its presence and increasing its market share. In 2008 AgustaWestland Malaysia Sdn Bhd opened a new regional maintenance and support centre located at Kuala Lumpur’s Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in 2008, aimed at supporting the increasing AgustaWestland fleet and keeping closer to the growing number of customers in the region.