AW119 Koala
Role	Utility helicopter
Manufacturer	Agusta, later AgustaWestland
First flight	February 1995
Introduction	2000
Produced	2000-
Number built	91 as of March 19, 2007[1]
Unit cost	$USD 1.85 million in 2000[2]
Developed from	Agusta A109

Agusta A119 Koala at HeliRussia 2008

The AgustaWestland AW119 Koala is an eight-seat utility helicopter powered by a single turboshaft engine produced for the civil market. Introduced as the Agusta A119 Koala prior to the Agusta-Westland merger, it is targeted at operators favoring lower running costs of a single-engine aircraft over redundancy of a twin.^[3]

Development[link]

The A119 designation was first applied to a proposed 11-seat stretched version of the A109 in the 1970s,^[4] but this was never actually built. The helicopter that was eventually to enter production was conceived in 1994, as Agusta was recovering from the financial woes that had nearly put the company out of business,^[5] and the second of two prototypes took to the air in February the following year.^[2] The first prototype was used for static tests.^[1] Civil certification was originally anticipated in 1997, but that deadline was missed with Agusta citing personnel problems, and a need to increase the performance of the aircraft to meet customer expectations.^[2]

By way of a solution to the latter concern, the decision was taken to change the A119's powerplant. The prototypes were originally fitted with Turboméca Arriel 2K1 turboshafts, but the ubiquitous Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6B was chosen in its place.^[6] In 1998, the prototypes were remanufactured with this engine, and assigned new serial numbers.^[1] Certification was now expected by the fourth quarter of that year, but this date slipped to July 1999, and it was eventually December before Italian RAI certification was awarded.^[2] US FAA certification was awarded in February the following year.^[2] Customer deliveries began soon thereafter,^[2] with the first commercial example going to Australian logistics company Linfox (serial 14007, registration VH-FOX).^[1]

Design[link]

The design itself was derived from Agusta's highly successful A109, but with only a single engine (as the A109 was originally designed)^[5] and with fixed skids replacing the retractable wheeled landing gear. A key selling point is its wide-body fuselage, seating passengers three-abreast in the cabin, or allowing for two litters and medical attendants to be carried in the medevac role, whereas most similar-sized helicopters can only carry one.^[3] The actual cabin volume is approximately 30% greater than other helicopters in its class.^[6]

Variants[link]

AgustaWestland AW119 Koala Ke at Wagga Wagga Airport

• A119 - original production version (AW119 after Agusta-Westland merger)
  • AW119 Ke - redesigned rotors, greater payload, better fuel efficiency^[7]

Brazil Aircrash - Police Force[link]

On 05 May 2012, a Koala AW119 Mk-II Enhanced, PP-CGO, of Polícia Civil do Estado de Goiás(Civil Police of Goiás State), crashed minutes after takeoff. With only 300 flight hours, an experienced pilot and methodical, the helicopter crash raises suspicions of mechanical failure. People who witnessed the crash said the helicopter was spinning on its axis runaway and some rotor blades coming apart in the air before colliding with the ground. 8 people, including 5 officers, died in the accident. http://www.policiacivil.go.gov.br/09/05/2012/9679

Operators[link]

Major operators are:^[1]

•  United States
  • TexAir Helicopters – 7 aircraft
  • New York City Police Department – 4 aircraft
  • TriState CareFlight – 7 aircraft
  • Phoenix Police Department – 3 aircraft
• State of Goiás – 2 aircraft (were 3 untill recently, when one crashed in 08/05/2012), delivered in December 2010^[8]
• State of Santa Catarina – 1 aircraft, to be delivered in December 2010
• Finnish Border Guard – 4 aircraft
• Mexico State Government – 4 aircraft
• Air Mercy Service – 4 aircraft

Specifications (AW119Ke)[link]

Data from AgustaWestland website^[9]

General characteristics

• Crew: 1 pilot
• Capacity: 6-7 passengers
• Length: 13.01 m (42 ft 8 in)
• Rotor diameter: 10.83 m (35 ft 6 in)
• Height: 3.77 m (12 ft 4 in)
• Disc area: 92.1 m² (991 ft²)
• Empty weight: 1,430 kg (3,152 lb)
• Loaded weight: kg (lb)
• Max. takeoff weight: 2,720 kg (6283 lb)
• Powerplant: 1 × Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6B-37A turboshaft, 747 kW (1,002 hp)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 267 km/h (166 mph, 152 knots)
• Ferry range: 991 km (618 miles, 535 nm)
• Service ceiling: 6,096 m (15,000 ft)

See also[link]

Related development

• Agusta A109
  

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

• Eurocopter Ecureuil
• Bell 407
• MD 600N
  

Related lists

• List of helicopters
  

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Agusta A119

• AgustaWestland A119 page
• AW119Ke announcement press release

• http://www.policiacivil.go.gov.br/09/05/2012/9679