Stefano Villanti has been appointed Managing Director of Leonardo Helicopters, effective immediately.
Villanti (pictured) brings extensive experience in Leonardo’s rotorcraft business, having held senior leadership positions within Leonardo Helicopters for the past 10 years, including leading Sales, Marketing and Contracts over the past three years.
As Managing Director, he will ensure that Leonardo Helicopters remains firmly focused on its key goals: delivering on commitments to customers, advancing the helicopter business’s industrial strategy and achieving its growth objectives.
Villanti said: “Leonardo is a major global player in the rotorcraft industry – a sector that, like much of the wider Aerospace, Defence and Security landscape, is navigating a period of considerable change. This environment calls for a balanced approach: continuity in execution and performance, combined with a careful assessment of longer-term priorities and the opportunities most valuable to maintaining and strengthening Leonardo’s competitiveness. With customers at the centre of everything we do, we will place acceleration in execution and innovation at the core of how we work, while continuing to enhance quality. We are fully committed to delivering on these priorities, drawing on the expertise, dedication and enthusiasm of everyone across the division.”
Lorenzo Mariani, CEO and General Manager of Leonardo, said: “Rotorcraft technology, with its unique performance, versatility and capability features, continues to provide an invaluable contribution across all defence, public service and civil markets. We are committed to further strengthening this strategic area of business, increasingly benefitting from synergies across our entire organisation. This will allow us to rapidly understand, adapt to and respond to evolving requirements, anticipating new trends both in terms of innovation and operational needs. I wish Stefano Villanti, in his new role, and his team continued success to achieve further growth and new global competitiveness objectives.”
Image: Leonardo Helicopters

