Agusta A129 Mangusta
| A129 Mangusta | |
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| The Agusta A129 Mangusta over Lugo, Emilia-Romagna | |
| Role | Attack helicopter |
| National origin | Italy |
| Manufacturer |
Agusta AgustaWestland Leonardo-Finmeccanica |
| First flight | 11 September 1983 |
| Status | In service |
| Primary user | Italian Army |
| Produced | 1983-present |
| Number built | 60 |
| Unit cost |
US$22 million (International version)
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| Variants | TAI/AgustaWestland T129 |
 Documentary discussing the A129
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A129 performing acrobatic manoeuvers
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Display flight of an A129
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The Agusta A129 Mangusta (English: Mongoose) is an attack helicopter originally designed and produced by Italian company Agusta. It has the distinction of being the first attack helicopter to be designed and produced wholly in Europe. It has continued to be developed by AgustaWestland, the successor company to Agusta. The A129 has undergone several combat deployments since entering service with the Italian Army in the 1990s.
A derivative of the A129, the TAI/AgustaWestland T129 ATAK, is being developed by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) in cooperation with AgustaWestland. TAI will produce the T129 for the Turkish Army and potentially export customers.
In 1972, the Italian Army began forming a requirement for a light observation and anti-tank helicopter; around the same time, the West German military had identified a similar need. The two nations' requirements led to a joint project being initiated between the Italian company Agusta and West German company MBB; however, the joint effort was soon dissolved following preliminary work. Agusta had initially studied the development of a combat-orientated derivative of their existing A109 helicopter, however they decided to proceed with the development of a more ambitious helicopter design. In 1978, Agusta formally began the design process on what would become the A129.
On 11 September 1983, the first of five A129 prototypes made the type's maiden flight; the fifth prototype would first fly in March 1986. Around the same time, the Italian Army placed an order for a total of 60 A129s. According to defence publication Jane's Information Group, by 1985, the A129 was considered to be a comparable attack helicopter to the American-built McDonnell Douglas AH-64 Apache, and showed potential on the export market.
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Wikipedia