Leonardo and Era Group, one of the largest helicopter operators in the world, today announced the signing of an agreement of significant strategic and commercial importance that will launch the AW609 convertiplane on the US civilian market, with the aim of showing the versatility of the aircraft through its use in a wide range of missions.

Era Group, already engaged with Leonardo in a collaboration aimed at perfecting the design, development and operational efficiency of the AW609, will take over two convertibles in the 2020 together with a package of dedicated training services. The aircraft, capable of accommodating up to nine passengers on board, will be used in the USA for numerous uses including offshore and corporate transport, air ambulance and search and rescue.

"The decision of Era Group to proceed with the entry into service of the AW609 is a result of great importance in view of the entry into the market of this revolutionary aircraft," said Gian Piero Cutillo, Head of the Helicopters Division of Leonardo. "Era Group, our major civil customer with a long and strong experience in the use of new generation products from Leonardo, confirms that it wants to focus on vertical flight technologies that will change the world of air transport".

"As we celebrate our 70 years of operations, we look to the future of aviation that will enable us to remain at the service of our customers and the communities that benefit from our activities in a rapidly changing world," said the CEO Delegate of Era Group Inc. Chris Bradshaw. "We consider the AW609 part of our future and we look forward to strengthening the collaboration with Leonardo in this phase of preparation for the launch of commercial operations with the new convertiplano for the various types of mission we carry out".

The AW609 features unique flight characteristics, combining the benefits of a helicopter with those of an airplane. The AW609 can take off and land vertically, carrying a maximum of nine people in a pressurized cabin at twice the speed and distance typical of helicopters and at a higher altitude in the event of adverse weather conditions, thus representing a generational leap in the airplane transport. With the AW609, Leonardo introduces new modes of operation for different missions, including search and rescue, passenger transport,

Emergency medical evacuation, offshore transport and public safety. The development of this innovative aircraft benefits from all Leonardo's engineering and industrial capabilities. The US site of Leonardo in Philadelphia will be responsible for deliveries. To date, they have been requested by operators worldwide for over 50 AW609.

Era Group

With 70 years of experience, Era is one of the largest helicopter operators in the world and the one with the longest tradition as a helicopter transport service provider in the United States. In addition to the USA, Era also operates in various Latin American countries and Asia. Its helicopters are used in particular for offshore transport tasks in support of the Oil & Gas industry, air ambulance, search and rescue, firefighting, utility, VIP and passenger transport. Era uses a wide range of Leonardo helicopters including the AW119, AW109 Power, AW139 and AW189 models.

Leonardo

Leonardo is among the top ten companies in the world at Aerospace, Defense and Security and the leading Italian industrial company. Since January, 2016 has been operating as a company organized in seven business divisions (Helicopters, Aircrafts, Aerostructures, Aircraft and Space Systems, Defense and Defense Systems, Security Systems and Information Systems), Leonardo competes on most important international markets leveraging its own areas of technological and product leadership. Listed on the Milan Stock Exchange (LDO), 2016 Leonardo recorded consolidated revenues of 12 billion and has a significant industrial presence in Italy, the United Kingdom, the USA and Poland.