The Agusta 119 Koala is a light/medium single-engine helicopter based on the A109 Power. It uses the A 109 Power fuselage, as well as dynamic systems, except that it uses one turbine engine instead of two. In addition, the fuselage is mounted on skids instead of a retractable, wheeled gear.
The Agusta 119 Koala is an eight-place light/medium single-engine turbine helicopter. The cabin has two compartments and the pilot compartment has two seats. The passenger cabin has five or six seats in two facing rows. Alternatively, two litters can be loaded through the side doors and placed one on each side of the cabin. In this configuration, there is also room for two medical attendants.
The Agusta 119 Koala drivetrain uses a single Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6B-37 engine, a four-bladed, fully articulated rotor and a two-bladed tail rotor. The main rotor blades are made of composites. The tail rotor blades are made of aluminum, as is the fuselage.
The design of the original Agusta 109 was launched in the mid-1960s. Development of the A109 Power was started in 1983, as was development of the A 119 Koala. The first flight of the Agusta 119 Koala prototype took place in 1995. Certification to the standards of FAR 27 was obtained in 2000 and first deliveries started the same year.
The AW119Kx, the latest evolution of the AW119, features the Garmin G1000H glass integrated flight deck system. This package included synthetic vision, moving map, highway in the sky and obstacle/terrain avoidance systems to improve situational awareness and increase safety. Certification of the AW119Kx was scheduled for the first quarter of 2013 and the new aircraft was officially unveiled at the Air Medical Transport Conference in October 2012.