U.K. Defence Secretary Phillip Hammond recently officially received the first two of a planned 62 AgustaWestland Wildcat helicopters for the army and navy.
At the Farnborough International Air Show, Hammond confirmed that Finmeccanica’s AgustaWestland unit is receiving an approximately $388 million support and training contract for the new AW 159 fleet.
“Wildcat represents a considerable advance over the current Lynx helicopters, bringing greatly improved performance and capability,” Hammond said. “The contract to provide training and support will keep them flying wherever they are needed.”
The MoD is buying 34 Army Wildcats and 28 maritime attack variants, which will replace the Lynx fleet operated by the Army Air Corps and Fleet Air Arm.
Army helicopters will come first, moving into service in 2014. The first Royal Navy Wildcats are due to be delivered for training later this year before entering service in 2015.
The Army Wildcat will primarily be used in a reconnaissance role, providing protection to soldiers on the ground. The maritime attack version will protect the Navy’s fleet around the world.
Both variants have more powerful engines than the Lynx, so the helicopters can be used on operations all-year-round in extreme conditions. The Wildcat fuselage also will give better crew protection.
Both variants are armed with general purpose and heavy machine guns and Navy helicopters will also carry Sting Ray torpedoes. Army and Navy pilots will use high-tech interactive displays thanks to state-of-the-art glass cockpits.
The Wildcat in-service support and training contract will include flight simulators and a wide range of other equipment to train pilots, ground crew and engineers.