The helicopters will enhance a fleet of three AW139s presently assisting a variety of tasks including pilot and aircrew officer instruction, utility backing for ADF exercises, and urgent response along with disaster relief operations.
With over 60 aircraft chosen by various operators in Australia, the AW139 is favored for its adaptability across numerous missions, including Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS), Search and Rescue (SAR), law enforcement, offshore operations, and defense.
The AW139 has demonstrated remarkable success as platforms with military forces globally. It has cultivated an impressive reputation for its effectiveness in Search and Rescue, Medical Evacuation (MEDEVAC), special operations, homeland security, slow mover intercept, advanced training, utility, and transportation.
Rome, 01/03/2023 – Leonardo revealed today the enhancement of its AW139 intermediate twin-engine helicopter fleet in Australia with an acquisition of two aircraft by the leading helicopter operator Toll Helicopters (Toll). These helicopters will bolster a fleet of three AW139s currently engaged in diverse tasks, including pilot and aircrew officer instruction, utility support to ADF exercises, and urgent response along with disaster relief efforts. They are scheduled to be delivered from Leonardo’s Vergiate final assembly facility in Italy in the latter half of 2023, bringing Toll’s fleet of AW139s to a total of 12.
The newly acquired AW139s will aid Toll Helicopters in fulfilling contractual obligations across two programs: a Crash Response Helicopter Service for the 1st Aviation Regiment in Darwin and the Army Commercial Helicopter program, currently stationed out of the 5th Aviation Regiment in Townsville. The aircraft are equipped with a searchlight, hoist, cargo hook, and provisions for EO/IR equipment, designed to support a spectrum of training, urgent response, and disaster relief tasks.
The AW139 has been acquired by Leonardo in several State Governments across the country to perform a range of law enforcement, patrol, surveillance, maritime search and rescue missions, and policing operations. These helicopters are perfect for law enforcement, EMS, and parapublic tasks thanks to their capability, dependability, and safety. A fleet of over 60 units currently undertakes all these missions in Australia, in addition to energy support and transportation services.
With more than 1,130 units in operation with over 280 customers in approximately 90 countries and over 3.6 million flight hours recorded to date since its certification in 2004, the AW139 has also proven to be incredibly successful among military operators worldwide for various functions, including SAR, MEDEVAC, special operations, homeland security, slow mover intercept, advanced training, utility, and transportation. The AW139 exhibits exceptional capabilities, technology, and safety to comply with strict operator requirements for missions in challenging environments to optimize effectiveness. This model features cutting-edge avionics with advanced navigation and collision avoidance systems to improve situational awareness and lessen pilots’ workload, unmatched speed, power reserves, and overall performance, the most spacious cabin in its classification offering high modularity for swift reconfiguration, a unique 60+ min run-dry capable main gearbox for improved reliability and safety, and up to 1000 certified kits.
Toll Helicopters, located in Brisbane, is a seasoned provider of specialized mission-critical helicopter services and training for Government, Defence, and the civil sector, focusing on helicopter emergency medical services, search and rescue operations, airborne law enforcement, training, and logistics support. Toll is a Leonardo Authorized Training Centre with the sole OEM-approved AW139 Full Flight Simulator in the Oceania region.
