Story ID: 741
Leonardo Delivers GrandNew
By: Curt Epstein
Caption: The Italian airframer sees growing worldwide demand for VIP rotorcraft operations.
Word Count: 545
Here at EBACE, Italian helicopter manufacturer Leonardo (Booth Z24) is delivering one VIP helicopter and signing a deal for another, helping fuel the company’s perception that a recovery in the VIP rotorcraft segment is starting. “One of the things that we are gathering from the market is there is a significant demand for air-taxi and chartering operations coming from different sides of the world,” noted Manuela Barbarossa, the airframer’s head of the VVIP and corporate segment in its commercial business unit. “This is providing the opportunities to demonstrate the quality of the technology we can deliver to the executive and corporate duties in the rotorcraft community."

In a ceremony yesterday, Mountainflyers Helicopters Switzerland accepted its first twin-engine helicopter, the AW109SP GrandNew on display at Leonardo’s booth. Based at Bern Airport, Mountainflyers provides pilot training and air-taxi service with a fleet of AS350 AStars, and it will make its first foray into VIP transport with the new helicopter. “It’s really exciting,” said Nic Raz, the operator’s sales administrator. “It’s a new market, it’s a beautiful helicopter that can deliver good service with good speed.”

From its base, Mountainflyers will provide VIP air-taxi service with the GrandNew throughout the Swiss Alps region at the rate of 75 CHF per minute, exclusive of landing fees and other tariffs. With a top cruising speed of more than 140 knots, that puts destinations such as Geneva just 35 minutes away, Milan 45 minutes, Monaco one hour and 20 minutes, and Paris a one-hour 45-minute flight.

The sleek, all-black AW109SP marks the 20th VIP helicopter Leonardo has delivered to the Swiss market, about the same number it has provided to the country’s EMS and search-and-rescue operators. “Switzerland is quite a good market for us,” said Barbarossa. “It helps us maintain our leading position in the multiengine helicopter globally, where we have over a 50 percent market share.”

The single-pilot certified AW109SP can seat six in the cabin, plus another passenger in the cockpit. The GrandNew was the first in the light-twin segment to receive synthetic and enhanced vision capability, providing increased situational awareness and reduced pilot workload, “when you need to fly the valleys or very close to the mountains in zero visibility,” said Barbarossa. “This allows allweather operations and significantly increased safety.” The helicopter, which has a base price of approximately €5.5 million, also comes factory equipped with ADS-B OUT, which is expected to receive EASA and FAA certification next month, giving the helicopter NextGen capability three years head of the compliance mandate.

The Mountainflyers helicopter is outfitted with a custom luxury interior, featuring a minibar, cabin climate control, leather seating, power ports, reading lights, and a private cabin intercommunication system. “You can have a very luxurious and comfortable cabin, but at the same time the latest technology features embedded in terms of avionics and performance,” Barbarossa told AIN. “We offer full customization capability, so customers are always welcome to come and sit down with our group of designers who normally help them out,” she said, adding such customization is available to all its customers. “It’s part of our offering and we do consider this a plus compared to what others normally do.”