First Poland-made AW-149 chopper delivered to military unit
The 25th Air Cavalry Brigade has received the first multi-role helicopter AW-149 produced in Poland by the Italian-British company Leonardo Helicopters, Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz has said.
Under Poland's contract with Leonardo Helicopters, the first 10 AW-149s were produced in Italy, with the remaining 22 to be built at the company's Polish subsidiary, PZL Swidnik.
On Thursday, Kosiniak-Kamysz took part in a handover ceremony of the first Polish AW-149 to the 25th Air Cavalry Brigade at a military airfield in Nowy Glinnik in central Poland.
"The AW-149 is a very good multi-role aircraft which is produced in Poland in cooperation with our Italian allies," the defence minister said.
The PLN 8.25 billion (EUR 1.95 bln) contract for the delivery of 32 AW-149s was signed with the Italy-headquartered company in 2022 and included an obligation for Leonardo Helicopters to create a production line for the aircraft at PZL Swidnik.
The 25th Air Cavalry Brigade has so far received 11 of the 32 contracted helicopters. (PAP)
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