Austria receives AW169M

The Austrian Ministry of Defence received its first AW169M LUH helicopter, at Tulln-Langenlebarn Brumowski Air Base this month.

The helicopter, built at Leonardo’s facility in Vergiate, Italy, is the first of a batch of 18 aircraft ordered by the Austrian government to replace its ageing Alouette III fleet – which have been in service since the 1960s.

The AW169M LUHs will ‘be able to carry out a wide range of missions supporting Austrian defence requirements and the national community, such as troop transport, combat operations, disaster relief and emergency response, firefighting, mountain rescue and Medevac’, said Leonardo.

The handover is the first international delivery of an AW169M variant, under a government to government (G2G) program established between Austria and Italy at the end of 2021. The two countries also announced the signing of an amendment to this program, allowing Austria to exercise options for up to 18 additional aircraft.

“It gives us great pleasure to see the first AW169M LUH here in Austria and we welcome the decision to further expand the fleet,” said Alessandro Profumo, CEO of Leonardo.

“We look forward to providing an even greater contribution with the most technologically advanced and cost-effective solution to meet the stringent requirements set by the collaboration between the two governments. We’re committed to sustaining this important and growing programme.”