2027 Now The Target Year For Service Entry Of AW609 The new Leonardo AW609 civil tilt-rotor now has a more concrete timeline to enter into service. 2027 is the year that the new civil tilt-rotor is expected to come online with customers. It is currently undergoing the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Type Inspection Authorization (TIA) regime. The Italian OEM suggested that, “we will soon start maturity assessment activities to explore the use of the aircraft in operational contexts”.
The OEM believes that the best use-case for the AW609 civil tilt-rotor when it comes into service is in the civil transport sector for VIP transport and passenger travel. This is for the initial phases of operation after service entry however, Leonardo has also been seeing stronger interest in the aircraft from the government sector market in terms of roles such as maritime, patrol/surveillance, logistical transfers.
However, the certification of this aircraft will be under the FAA's powered-lift category as the aircraft is not exactly a conventionally operated turboprop and therefore the path to certification is much more stringent. “An all-new regulatory framework also including the stringent requirements typically set in the civil sector. This is unprecedented in the industry and requires time and multiple reviews before each step ahead is taken, [then] moving to the next stage of development, testing, and assessment. It is always worth noting this is not just an industry effort, it’s a shared effort involving other players, especially the FAA”, says Leonardo.
Coming up to the 2027 deadline that Leonardo has set for themselves to get the AW609 civil tilt-rotor into service, there will be an increase in demonstration flights for potential and existing customers as well as market penetration and promotion exercises. The AW609 has been under development for a while now and it now has a Chinese competitor that JF highlighted recently, the Lanying R6000. For more information: Leonardo Via Giovanni Agusta, 520 21017 Cascina Costa di Samarate (VA) Italy www.leonardo.com ***
