Leonardo's acquisition of Bell’s share of the AW609 tiltrotor program in 2011 raised widespread speculation regarding the terms of the agreement, specifically about whether it precluded an armed, militarized version of the aircraft from ever coming to market. That conjecture increased last year when Leonardo Helicopters managing director Gian Piero Cutillo revealed that the company entered talks with the Italian government on the AW609, perhaps to develop a para-public version of the aircraft.
Then, in December, the U.S. Army awarded Bell the contract to develop its V-280 tiltrotor prototype into the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft. The V-280 has a maximum cruise speed approaching 300 knots, more than 100 knots faster than attack helicopters such as the current Boeing AH-64 Apache or the proposed Future Attack and Reconnaissance Aircraft, for which Bell and Sikorsky remain in competition. The award led to further speculation about the future military utility of the AW609, this time as a possible escort aircraft for the V-280.
Neither Bell nor Leonardo will publicly comment on the terms of the AW609 deal. However, a variety of governments, including the UAE and Malaysia, have expressed interest in the aircraft, believed linked to surveillance, patrol, medevac, or search and rescue configurations. A Bell spokesman contacted by AIN referred comment to Leonardo, which declined to disclose the details of the contract. "However, we can share that we see great interest in the AW609 from military users in roles including patrol, SAR, and special operations,” said a Leonardo spokesperson.
Tiltrotors have served as research aircraft since the 1950s. The Bell-Boeing V-22 made its first flight in 1989 before going into operation in 2007, first with the U.S. Marine Corps and then with the U.S. Air Force, and now the U.S. Navy as a carrier onboard delivery aircraft. Altogether, more than 400 V-22 family aircraft have been delivered. While providing military forces with unique capabilities, the V-22 has drawn frequent criticism for its high development and unit costs, maintenance complexities, and comparatively low rate of operational readiness. In a scathing critique of the aircraft delivered in May, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), whose state hosts Sikorsky’s headquarters and main manufacturing facilities, claimed the V-22 registered an operational readiness of 56 percent, a current unit cost of $100 million, and a 15-year gestation period.
While demonstrably smaller, the AW609 features the basic architecture of the V-22, namely proprotors attached to engines that swivel to provide both vertical and horizontal flight and various degrees of transition between. The aircraft’s unit cost to the end user has generated further industry speculation, which initially placed it on par with conventional super-medium civil helicopters. But Leonardo has steadfastly refused to publicly disclose a likely price range for the aircraft, nor the size of its order book. However, it has disclosed select individual orders, from offshore operator Bristow and a four-ship order from a European customer.
Leonardo’s reticence to discuss price is fueling the hypothesis that the aircraft needs to attract substantial para-public and even military orders for the program to succeed commercially.
Since 2011, the AW609 has undergone if not a redesign, then certainly an optimization of the original design and supply chain. The cabin height has increased from 54 to 60 inches, width now spans 58 inches, and length totals 13 feet, 5 inches—dimensions that make the AW609 just as large or more spacious than popular business turboprops. Leonardo gave the main cabin door a clamshell design and widened it to 35 inches, making the 609 more suitable for a medevac role, especially when fitted with an integrated 600-pound hoist. With auxiliary tanks, the 270-knot AW609 flies to a maximum unrefueled range of 1,000 nm. The aircraft is powered by a pair of Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6C-67A turboshafts and equipped with Collins Pro-Line Fusion digital avionics. In a utility/military configuration, the cabin can accommodate 12 passengers and 2 crew.
At this point, flight testing of the aircraft is largely complete, and certification authority pilots from the FAA and EASA flew the aircraft earlier this year for purposes of familiarization. Leonardo has been working with the FAA on a certification basis for the aircraft independent of powered lift category regulations now under development by the agency, so it is conceivable, but not certain, that it could gain certification this year or early next year.