Mayor Michael A. Nutter and Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Alan Greenberger welcomed yesterday’s announcement by AgustaWestland that the AW609 civil TiltRotor helicopter will be manufactured at the company’s Philadelphia facility.

“As one of this city’s most innovative and global companies we are tremendously excited that this new cutting edge aircraft will be manufactured by AgustaWestland in Philadelphia,” said Mayor Nutter.  “Congratulations to CEO Bill Hunt and the more than 560 employees at the Philadelphia facility and we look forward to continuing to work with AgustaWestland as they grow production and manufacturing jobs in our city.”

AgustaWestland Philadelphia, AgustaWestland’s center of operations for production, sales, customer support and training across the Americas, operates out of a 275,000 square foot facility, on a 39-acre site at Northeast Philadelphia Airport in Pennsylvania. The facility also includes final assembly lines for the AW119Kx and AW139 helicopters, a parts supply depot for the Americas and a fully approved FAA and JAA repair station.

AgustaWestland CEO Bill Hunt is an active member of Philadelphia’s manufacturing community and was a co-chair of the Mayor’s Manufacturing Task Force alongside Councilman Bobby Henon, Dan Fitzpatrick from Citizens Bank, and Alan Greenberger, Deputy Mayor for Economic Development.

“This announcement by AgustaWestland is yet another vote of confidence in Philadelphia as innovative companies increasingly choose to locate and grow in our city,” said Deputy Mayor Alan Greenberger.  “It is particularly encouraging that manufacturing companies such as AgustaWestland and Dietz and Watson are expanding their presence adding to the 23,000 manufacturing jobs that support communities across Philadelphia.  This Administration will continue to prioritize supporting and growing manufacturing in Philadelphia.”

The report issued by the Mayor’s Manufacturing Task Force can be found here. The task force recommended a number of actions including the creation of an Office of Manufacturing and Industry within the Department of Commerce which is headed by Director Mike Cooper.