Agusta A.106

The Agusta A.106 was specifically designed as a single-seat light helicopter to serve as an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) platform for the Impavido-class destroyers of the Italian Navy.

To ensure optimal performance, the aircraft was equipped with a sophisticated electronics suite provided by Ferranti, which facilitated auto stabilisation and contact identification.

Additionally, the fuselage of the helicopter had the capability to carry two torpedoes.

For convenient shipboard storage, the tail and two-bladed main rotor could be folded, and the skid undercarriage featured fittings for flotation bags.

The development process resulted in the creation of two prototypes, with the first one taking flight in November 1965.

Unfortunately, a pre-production batch of five helicopters was ultimately cancelled by the Navy in 1973.

Specifications

Crew

One

Length

8.00 m (26 ft 3 in)

Height

2.5 m (8 ft 2.5 in)

Empty weight

590 kg (1,300 lb)

Gross weight

1,400 kg (3,086 lb)

Powerplant

1 × Turbomeca-Agusta TA.230,

224 kW (300 hp)

Main rotor diameter

9.50 m (31 ft 2 in)

Main rotor area

70.9 m² (763 sq ft)

Performance

Maximum speed

176 km/h (109 mph, 95 kn)

Range

740 km (460 mi, 400 nmi) 

Endurance

4 hours 30 minutes

Service ceiling

3,000 m (9,800 ft) 

Rate of climb

6.2 m/s (1,220 ft/min)

Armament

2 × Mk.44 torpedoes 

or

10 × depth charges 

or

2 × 7.62 mm machine-guns

&

10 × 80 mm rockets.

Sources

Airlife’s Helicopters and Rotorcraft-R W Simpson.