The US Naval Air Systems Command has awarded Leonardo a contract modification for the delivery of an additional 36 TH-73A helicopters as part of the service’s Advanced Helicopter Training System (AHTS) program.
Awarded to Leonardo’s subsidiary AgustaWestland Philadelphia Corp., the contract is worth $159.4 million and is expected to be completed in December 2023.
The latest modification brings the total number of helicopters on order to 104, and follows two previous orders from January and November 2020. The navy has a requirement for a total of 130 airframes, which means another 36 units are yet to be ordered.
NAVAIR issued the contract modification after Leonardo delivered the first TH-73A to the navy in June this year.
The navy has meanwhile named its new training helicopter the “Trasher” and has begun operations after first units landed at Naval Air Station (NAS) Whiting Field in Milton in August.
The TH-73A incorporates a modern avionics suite with a fully integrated flight management system, automatic flight control system, and independent, digital cockpit displays to both pilot stations. It boasts increased performance in power, speed, payload, and endurance over the Sea Ranger, making it comparable to fleet aircraft. These upgrades will help bridge capability and capacity gaps to better prepare newly winged naval aviators as they transition to fleet replacement squadrons for postgraduate training.
In addition to new helicopters, the full Advanced Helicopter Training System (AHTS) includes aircrew training services that provide availability on new simulators, a modernized curriculum, and a new contractor logistics support contract for Thrasher maintenance and flight line support.
