News
Commercial
EMS
THC of Saudi Arabia orders 20 AW139s, signs multiyear agreement for more than 130 helicopters
February 28, 2024 By Helicopters Staff
The Helicopter Company, owned by the Public Investment Fund in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, placed an order for 20 Leonardo AW139 intermediate twin-engine helicopters and reached a multi-year Framework Agreement for more than 130 aircraft.
The contract for 20 AW139s, explains Leonardo, aims at primarily strengthening the emergency medical service (EMS) and search and rescue (SAR) fleet in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with deliveries expected to be carried out in 2025 and 2026.
The Framework Agreement for more than 130 aircraft includes a mix of AW109s, AW169s, AW139s and AW189Ks for various applications, with a first batch of orders foreseen by the first half of this year and delivery positions to THC over five to seven years.
By the time all these latest firmly ordered AW139s are delivered, THC will have a total fleet of approximately 50 AW139s carrying out a range of missions including EMS, SAR and corporate transport in the country, making THC one of the largest AW139 operators globally.
The AW139 was certified in 2004 and has logged orders for more than 1,400 units from over 290 customers in over 90 countries to date. The fleet of over 1,200 units in service has now exceeded four million flight hours. Almost 200 units have been sold in the Middle East.
