Leonardo and Italy in Advanced Talks on Expanding AW-249 Helicopter Fleet

Leonardo and the Italian Ministry of Defense are in advanced talks to expand the Italian Army’s AW-249 combat helicopter fleet, company officials said Thursday at the Berlin Airshow. A full-scale model of the AW-249 stood on display at the Berlin Airshow on June 11, 2026. Leonardo CEO Lorenzo Mariani and Deputy Chief of the Italian Army General Staff Lt.

Gen. Salvatore Cuoci stood in front of the model. “Leonardo is aiming to produce and deliver 17 units to the Army by 2028 — at present we have 19 aircraft already procured and 14 more are being negotiated, out of a total requirement for 48 helicopters,” Roberto Pretolani, head of Leonardo’s military specialized platforms for helicopters marketing, told reporters.

The AW-249 is being developed as a replacement for the Italian AW-129 fleet. The helicopter has entered the final stage of capability qualification, and Leonardo has made a headstart on series production. Leonardo has been experimenting with crewed-uncrewed teaming since 2015.

6 million contract to AeroVironment for procurement of an undisclosed number of Jump 20 drones, a medium-class, fixed-wing platform with an advertised range of 185 kilometers. “Going on the AW-249, we are already in the phase of implementing this concept with the asset selected by the Army as a tactical UAS,” Pretolani said.

The AW-249 interface has been designed to work with multiple drones, and Pretolani said the drone integration is independent of the 2028 start date for helicopter deliveries.

European-made armaments that could be integrated onto the AW-249 include MBDA-produced Brimstone, Akeron LP, and Fulgur missiles. The Fulgur missile is in development for the Italian Army. One envisaged use-case for the AW-249 is to “fly at high-speed and low-level in order to penetrate deep into enemy territory,” Marco Marinoni, head of the AH-249 acquisition program in the Italian Army, said.