Made in Italy: From Agusta to the Finmeccanica Helicopter Division By Mauro Finati and Paolo Rollino AgustaWestland’s main plant in Vergiate, Italy, the company’s primary production and flight test facility. (All photos by the authors.) gustaWestland is one of the due to a sudden in‑flight failure; in 1913, (Industrie Meccaniche e Aeronautiche most important helicopter Agusta started to work at the Caproni Meridionali) and SIAI (Società Idrovolanti Amanufacturers in the world today. aircraft factory. Immediately following Alta Italia). More than 4,800 AW rotorcraft take off World War I, he founded Costruzioni With the end of World War II, Agusta every day and the company has a full Aeronautiche Giovanni Agusta with found itself at an impasse, due to the order‑book for the next 30‑36 months; overhaul workshops at Tripoli and ban on Italy to produce aircraft. Taking 2014 data shows revenues of €4.4B Benghazi in Libya, and Foggia, Italy. advantage of the boom in the motorcycle ($4.9B) and a workforce of 12,850. Finally, in 1923, he moved to Cascina industry and the superiority of their own As the company is now in the midst Costa, a site close to the present day knowledge in mechanics, Domenico, of a name change (see sidebar), this Milan‑Malpensa Airport, article focuses on the past, present and which is still part of the future of helicopter production at the modern AgustaWestland company’s main manufacturing plant in production plant and Vergiate, Italy. helicopter test center. Giovanni died A Brief History of Agusta prematurely in 1927, and the company went under The Italian rotorcraft group traces the guidance of his wife, its origins to the beginning of the 20th Giuseppina, and his son, Century, when Giovanni Agusta designed Domenico. At Cascina and manufactured the AG‑1 in 1907, a Costa, Agusta expanded biplane glider that made its first flight its activity by producing towed by a car during a public parade aircraft licensed from at Capua. A few years later, in 1911, he Fiat (originally, Fabbrica invented the first drag chute in order to Italiana Automobili A hangar full of AW139s being checked out and awaiting flight be able to slow the descent of a plane Torino), Breda, IMAM testing. 32 VERTIFLITE March/April 2016 now alone at the head of the company, decided to establish a new company for the production and marketing of motor AgustaWestland is the Brand bikes. Thus, in February 1945, Meccanica inmeccanica is the leading There appeared to be a lot Verghera Agusta was born and would high‑tech industrial group of confusion in the press and the produce more than 30 different models. Fin Italy and a top 10 global public when Finmeccanica officially But MV Agusta owes its fame and company in the aerospace, defense announced the divisions — just as notoriety to its racing division: from 1952 and security sector. Finmeccanica most of Europe and North America to 1976 the racing team department was was established in 1948 as a holding were taking off for the Christmas be able to bring their riders — among company, itself a subholding holiday season — and said that them, Leslie Graham, Carlo Ubbiali, Gary for the mechanical industry of “AgustaWestland” would be renamed Hocking and the unparalleled Giacomo the state‑owned Istituto per la the “Finmeccanica Helicopter Agostini — to the top step of the podium Ricostruzione Industriale (“Institute Division.” The AgustaWestland 3,000 times, with 279 Grand Prix wins and for Industrial Reconstruction”); website was taken down and the 76 World Championships. better known as IRI, it was dissolved name was not evident on the Meanwhile, aviation activities at in 2000. The prefix Fin denotes a main page of the Finmeccanica Cascina Costa finally resumed in 1950 state‑controlled financial holding website. Eventually it was gleaned with the creation of a small series of company that gathered together that although the corporate biplanes. But it was two years later numerous smaller firms, with structure of AgustaWestland was that the company hit its turning point: Meccanica, Italian for “mechanics.” dissolved, the brand and the “AW” on Aug. 11, 1952, Domenico Agusta Finmeccanica has more than aircraft designation would remain. signed an agreement with the American 47,000 employees (about 37% (Speculation was that the AW139 company Bell Aircraft Corporation outside of Italy), and in 2014 recorded would be called the FH139 or F139, and undertook the challenge of the €14.6B ($16.4B) in revenues and etc.) future — to produce and sell helicopters. orders in the amount of €15.6B Despite this December On May 22, 1954, the first helicopter ($17.5B). The company is partially announcement, the transition built by the company — an Agusta‑Bell owned by the Italian government from a holding company had been 47G — took off from the Cascina Costa through the Ministry of Economy approved by its board of directors apron; only two years later, the 100th and Finance, which holds 30.2% of in September 2014, and discussed helicopter was delivered. Helicopter Finmeccanica’s shares. regularly over the last few months of production increased dramatically in The company reorganized on 2015. This past August, Finmeccanica the 1960s after signing agreements with Jan. 1, 2016 from a financial holding CEO Mauro Moretti noted that he US manufacturers Sikorsky, Boeing and group to a unified corporation, a had been streamlining the company Hughes Helicopters. significant change to its legal status since he took over May 2014. Defense Beginning in 1958, Agusta started in Italy. The individual companies News quoted him in August as saying, to design, develop and fly machines of in the holding group that were “I have got rid of 200 managers and its own: from the heavy A.101G to the 100% owned by Finmeccanica — chosen the 10 that I need.” smaller A.103, A.104, A.105 and A.106. AgustaWestland, Alenia Aermacchi, Another part of the “One The production remained limited to a few Selex ES, OTO Melara and WASS — Company” strategy is to rename prototypes, but these projects enabled were dissolved, while it retained Finmeccanica. Defense News also the company to develop a complete its parent company and corporate reported in October that Moretti and independent design capability. On headquarters functions for those stated that “Finmeccanica is an Aug. 4, 1971, a few months after Corrado companies that are joint ventures — obsolete name, we will truly change Agusta took over following the death ATR, MBDA, Telespazio and Thales it,” and that the company will be of Domenico, Agusta made the first Alenia Space — as well as the given a name evoking “the sense flight of its A.109 Hirundo (Swallow) — a wholly‑owned US subsidiary, DRS of deep roots and a great future.” twin‑engine, four‑bladed helicopter with Technologies, Inc. Moretti been expected to announce a innovative features and performance — Finmeccanica now operates as a new “short and memorable” moniker which went into production in 1975. This single company with seven divisions: to take effect January 1, but it was helicopter was an immediate success, Helicopters, Aircraft, Aerostructures, decided to move ahead first with the as it sold hundreds of aircraft, and is Airborne & Space Systems, Land & legal corporate changes. still in production 40 years later. Agusta Naval Defence Electronics, Defence So, bottom line: While engineers Bruno Lovera and Paolo Systems and Security & Information AgustaWestland is no longer Bellavita led the development of the Systems. The company now operates the name of a company, it is still A.109. [AHS would later bestow some of exclusively in the aerospace, defence the name of the brand of the its highest honors upon the two. — Ed.] and security sector, as a result of the Finmeccanica Helicopter Division, In the meantime, the factory disposal of non‑core business units which itself will soon be renamed. continued to produce hundreds of other (such as its AnsaldoBreda railcar Got it? helicopters, such as the Bell‑licensed company) that it completed in 2015. Agusta‑Bell AB 204, 205, 212 and 412 Vol. 62, No. 2 33 The three-engine 13 t (28,400 lb) A.101G was AgustaWestland carries out the integration The AW101 (originally the EH101) was a joint Agusta’s first indigenous design. It first flew in and final assembly of the ICH-47F Chinook for development between Agusta and Westland, October 1964, but was dropped in 1971. the Italian Army. and laid the groundwork for the eventual merger of the two companies. Huey variants and the 206 JetRanger; Agusta had to buy out the financial Eurocopter, Eurocopter Deutschland and Sikorsky‑licensed SH‑3D/HH‑3F interests of his brothers’ heirs. For this, Stork Fokker Aerospace — for the 11 t Sea Kings, and the Boeing‑licensed the Agusta family sold 51% of the (24,250 lb) NH90 military helicopter. CH‑47C Chinooks for domestic use, as company to government‑owned Agency well as international customers and for Financing of State’s Manufacturing Coming into Recent Times armed forces. Industry (EFIM), which aimed at A few years later, Agusta began to achieving an aerospace industry by In July 2000, Finmeccanica SpA develop a combat helicopter to meet acquiring various companies and placing and GKN Ltd. signed an agreement for the needs of the Italian Army. The A.129 them under its control in Cascina Costa. the merger of their helicopter industry Mangusta (Mongoose), the very first The new Gruppo Agusta was split into subsidiaries (respectively Agusta and attack helicopter to be designed and three divisions: the Aircraft Division, the GKN‑Westland Helicopters), creating built entirely in Europe, had its maiden Helicopter Division and the Aerospace AgustaWestland SpA. On May 26, flight on Sept.