UK, Leonardo Sign New Medium Helicopter Contract

LONDON–The UK Ministry of Defense has signed a £1 billion ($1.3 billion) contract to acquire Leonardo’s AW149 battlefield utility helicopter for its New Medium Helicopter program.

The contract signature by materiel agency Defense Equipment and Support came on March 23 following a tortured 18-month-long wait. The rotorcraft manufacturer submitted its best and final offer in summer 2024. Leonardo was the only remaining bidder after competitors Airbus and Sikorsky withdrew. But the government did not declare the company as preferred bidder until March 1, when the company’s offer was about to time out. Local politicians and workers’ unions had warned that a failure to act could risk significant job losses in Yeovil or higher costs for taxpayers.

The government had planned to delay the decision until publication of its still-unreleased Defense Investment Plan. But pressure from local lawmakers and workers’ unions forced ministers to move ahead anyway.

The UK will purchase 23 AW149s to replace the Royal Air Force’s long-serving Airbus Puma Mk.2s that were withdrawn from use in April 2025. But the gap in the medium-lift rotary-wing capability will remain for another five years until the AW149s enter service in 2031, ministers revealed earlier this month, prompting questions about the pace of the UK’s rearmament.

Nigel Colman, managing director at Leonardo Helicopters, said the contract signing represented an “exciting future” for the Leonardo Helicopters UK business, as it supported the company’s long-term ambition to “grow our role in advanced technologies and the future of autonomy.” As part of the procurement, Leonardo will build AW149s for export at the company’s Yeovil site.