The last two AgustaWestland AW-109E "Power"
helicopters of the Philippine Navy (PN), this time the armed versions, will be
arriving this Monday.
This was disclosed by Navy spokesperson Col. Edgard Arevalo,
in a message to the PNA Sunday.
"(Monday) is the scheduled arrival of the two AW-109s.
These will be tested (air worthiness) and will be (tentatively) commissioned on
Jan. 16, 2015," he added.
No other details are available yet, Arevalo stressed.
The last two AW-109s are part of the five helicopter
contract signed by the Department of National Defense with AgustaWestland in
2013.
It is worth Php1.33 billion.
The armed versions of the AW-109Es will be armed with
machine guns, 20mm cannons and possibly, with air-to-ground rockets.
The AW-109 "Power" helicopter is a three-ton class
eight seat helicopter powered by two Pratt and Whitney PW206C engines.
The spacious cabin is designed to be fitted with a number of
modular equipment packages for quick and easy conversion between roles.
The aircraft’s safety features include a fully separated
fuel system, dual hydraulic boost system, dual electrical systems and redundant
lubrication and cooling systems for the main transmission and engines.
The AW-109 has established itself as the world’s best selling
light-twin helicopter for maritime missions.
It's superior speed, capacity and productivity combined with
reliability and ease of maintenance make it the most cost effective maritime
helicopter in its class.
For shipboard operations the aircraft has a reinforced-wheeled
landing gear and deck mooring points as well as extensive corrosion protection
measures.
The ability to operate from small ships in high sea state
enables the AW-109 to perform its mission when many others helicopters would be
confined to the ship’s hangar.
Over 550 AW-109 "Power" and AW-109 light utility
helicopters have been ordered for commercial, parapublic and military
applications by customers in almost 50 countries.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=720025
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