The U.S. Navy ordered a second lot of Leonardo TH-73A training helicopters form the company's U.S. operation AgustaWestland in a $171.0 million contract.
The contract modification provides for the production and delivery of 36 more TH-73As in support of the Advanced Helicopter Training System Program (AHTS).Fiscal 2021 funds were allocated for the contract modification.
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| Leonardo-built TH-73A (Photo Courtesy Leonardo) |
Italy's Leonardo previously won a $176.5 million contract for the first 32 TH-73As, ordered at the beginning of the year. This award included initial spare parts, ancillary equipment, and support services, and specific pilot and maintenance training services.
The U.S. Navy said in January it expected to eventually buy up to 130 examples in total as part of a deal that could be worth up to $648 million.
"The new Leonardo TH-73A helicopters are the cornerstone of AHTS, which is the planned replacement to address the capability and capacity gaps of the current aging TH-57 Sea Ranger helicopter training platform,” U.S. Navy Captain Todd St. Laurent, the Naval Undergraduate Flight Training Systems Program Manager said in a statement in January.
The TH 73-A will replace the Bell TH-57B/C SeaRanger helicopter at Training Air Wing Five at Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Milton, Florida. It will train future helicopter and tilt-rotor pilots for the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.
These new helicopters will ensure the Navy can train several hundred aviation students per year at Whiting Field.
TH-73A is a variant of the single engine Leonardo TH-119, a commercial helicopter previously sold for civilian use.
Deliveries of the first order are continuing through October 2021, while work on this second order of training helos is scheduled for completion in December 2022.
