Leonardo eyes Whiting center

Leonardo Helicopter said it will build a 100,000 square-foot customer support center adjacent to Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Northwest Florida if it's selected to supply the Navy’s Advanced Helicopter Training System. Leonardo, one of three companies competing to build the new helicopter trainer, is offering TH-119 single-engine helicopter to replace the Navy’s TH-57 training helicopters. The Navy is expected to make its selection for the 130 helicopters by the end of 2019. Leonardo’s planned support center will create up to 50 jobs to maintain the trainers. (Source: Leonardo, 09/25/19) The center would be built at the 267-acre Whiting Aviation Park, a new park adjacent to NAS Whiting Field. The other competitors are Airbus Helicopters and Bell, which built the TH-57.