Italian Navy Takes Delivery of Its First NH90 NFH

AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, is pleased to announce that the Italian Navy has taken delivery of its first NH90 NFH helicopter.

The Italian Navy has ordered a total of 56 NH90s (46 NFH and 10 TTH units) which will replace old helicopters for a variety of roles including anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare and utility. The NH90 NFH will give the Italian Navy a major increase in operational capability and mission effectiveness due to its outstanding technology and performance. This achievement is also the result of the strong cooperation with the Italian Ministry of Defence in the development of the NFH variant for the Italian Navy. The Italian Navy is the second customer to receive the NH90 in Italy, following the Italian Army which has a total of 60 NH90 TTH helicopters on order. Italy is one of the nations selecting the NFH variant together with The Netherlands, Norway, France and Belgium. A total of 111 NH90 NFH naval helicopters have been ordered by these nations.

The NH90 NFH variant is primarily designed for autonomous and joint Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) and Anti Surface Warfare (ASuW) missions. The comprehensive mission equipment packages allow a wide range of additional missions to be performed including Search and Rescue (SAR), maritime patrol, vertical replenishment, troop transport, medical evacuation and amphibious support roles. The helicopter is designed for day and night operations in adverse weather conditions from the decks of ships. Because of its optimal weight and dimensions, the deck-lock system, the deck traversing system and the automatic blade and tail folding system, it can operate from small frigates even in high sea states.

The NH90 is the most successful European helicopter programme ever. A total of 529 firm orders have been placed by 19 armed forces in 14 countries including The Netherlands, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Greece, Spain and Belgium in Europe, as well as Australia, New Zealand and Oman overseas and 76 NH90 helicopters are already in service today.

The NH90, developed in the TTH utility transport and NFH naval versions, proves the ideal solution to meet requirements from many potential additional customers worldwide for a number of duties. The NH90 programme is managed by NAHEMA (NATO Helicopter Management Agency) representing France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands and Portugal, and by the NH Industries industrial consortium comprising AgustaWestland (32%), Eurocopter (62.5%) and Fokker Aerostructures (5.5%). In the framework of the NH90 programme, AgustaWestland is responsible for the production of the main transmission, tail drive shafts, hydraulic system, automatic flight control system, rear ramp, rear fuselage, the T700/6E1 engine solution installation and on-board computers. Furthermore, AgustaWestland is also responsible for the overall integration of the NH90 naval mission system for all NFH variants. AgustaWestland's Venice Tessera plant is the new final assembly line for the NH90s ordered by Italy (Army and Navy, 60 and 56 helicopters respectively), the Netherlands (20), Norway (14) and Portugal (10) giving a total of 160 helicopters so far.

Source: [AgustaWestland] web site, 23/06/2011

Photo Story: NH90 NFH: the eyes and ears of a modern maritime fleet (Photo: NH industries)

The NFH version of NH90 is a primary maritime weapon system in the defence of a surface fleet. Operating from surface vessels, the helicopter is configured for submarine hunting, control of surface threats and Search and Rescue. The mission system and man machine interface has been developed to provide clear and accurate mission information. The integration of sensor and library information with data fusion techniques enables autonomous or joint operations through the use of voice and data link communications.

Primary Roles: Anti Submarine Warfare (ASW), Anti Surface Warfare (ASuW) and Search and Rescue

(23.06.2011)