The Polish government has signed a contract for 32 AW149 helicopters for the Land Forces.

This is reported on the Polish National Defense Ministry’s website.

The contract regards helicopters manufactured by Leonardo group, which includes PZL Świdnik.

“A contract has just been signed for AW149 helicopters, which will be used by the Land Forces. These are helicopters with a good reputation. We are talking about helicopters that are built within the Leonardo group. PZL Świdnik is one of the leading factories in this group of helicopter and aircraft manufacturers,” — Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said while approving the contract.

The contract provides for the supply of 32 AW 149 helicopters with a logistics package — spare parts and consumables.

It also includes equipment for helicopter ground maintenance and training equipment. The agreement covers pilots and technical personnel training. These helicopters will be used for transportation, support of troops from the air, as well as for evacuation and search operations. Helicopters will be ordered in a heavier version, they will be equipped with anti-tank guided missiles.

“The most important thing is that the Polish land forces will use modern helicopters. This, of course, is extremely important in the context of the international situation, in the context of the fact that Russia invaded Ukraine. In the context of the fact that there is now a war on our eastern border. (…) That is why we decided to speed up the process of modernization of the Polish Army. An example of such activity is the AW149 helicopter, which will be used in Polish Army,” — the Minister of Defense said.

The helicopters should be delivered in 2023-2029. The first boards will arrive next year. The value of the order is about $1.83 million (8.25 million zlotys).

AW149 helicopters in a configuration that meets the needs of the Polish armed forces will be equipped with surveillance systems, small arms, guided and unguided missiles. Weapons, depending on the option of using the helicopter, can be installed in the cockpit or on the suspension points of the helicopter.

AW149

The AW149 is a multi-role military helicopter capable of day and night operations.

• Maximum take-off weight: 8300 kg (possible increase to 8600 kg).
• Maximum helicopter speed: 313 km/h, cruise: 287 km/h.
• Maximum range: 958 km, maximum flight range: 4 hours and 55 minutes.
• The AW149 can take on board 19 passengers. The crew consists of 2 people, but the main tasks can be performed by one pilot.

As reported before, at the beginning of February 2021, media spreaded information about Poland considering the option of replacing Mi-2 helicopters with AW139.

In addition, in April 2019, Poland signed an agreement with the Italian defense group Leonardo to buy four AW101 helicopters for the national naval forces.