Story ID: 
Bristow's Leonardo Fleet Tops 500,000 Hours
By: Mark Huber
Caption: Leonardo marks Bristow milestone, first Africa sale for AW169. 
Word Count: 213
Bristow’s fleet of Leonardo helicopters has amassed more than 500,000 flight hours, with 300,000 of that coming in AW139 medium twins. Bristow operates more than 90 Leonardo helicopters in markets including North and South America, Europe, Africa, and Australasia in support of offshore energy and medevac/search-and-rescue missions. Bristow flies the AW139 and super-medium AW189 and is an early customer for the AW609 civil tiltrotor, which is still concluding flight testing. 

“We’re excited to celebrate this important moment with Bristow," said Leonardo Helicopters managing director Gian Piero Cutillo, "particularly after the challenging pandemic time we’ve been facing, when we have joined forces to guarantee the level of service expected to respond to the requirements of end-users and the served communities globally, either connecting mainland and rigs offshore or saving lives. We look forward to reaching one million flight hours.”   

Separately, Leonardo announced the first sale of a medium-twin AW169 into Africa, to Angolan operator Bestfly. The company, which has ordered three additional AW169s, plans to use the helicopters for both onshore and offshore operations. Overall, Leonardo has received orders and options for nearly 290 AW169s from 90 customers in more than 30 countries. More than 130 of the models have been delivered and the fleet has accumulated 90,000 flight hours.