The Mangusta was designed for a war on the plains of north-eastern Italy against Warsaw Pact armour, but its operational career was spent almost entirely on expeditionary missions. Italian Army Mangustas were deployed in the peacekeeping role in Somalia during the UN operations of the early 1990s, and later supported missions in the Balkans and Angola.

Their most sustained service came in Afghanistan, where Italian forces led the NATO effort in the west of the country around Herat. The Mangustas became operational there in 2007, escorting transport helicopters, protecting convoys and supporting Italian and allied troops in contact; by June 2014 the helicopters rotating through the theatre had flown more than 10,000 hours. The upgraded AW129D was first deployed there in November 2014. Italian defence writers have noted that the crews distinguished themselves in particularly dangerous missions, and that the aircraft’s survivability was demonstrated more than once by the damage they brought home.

In Iraq, Mangustas served with Italian forces at Nasiriyah during Operation Antica Babilonia after 2003, and returned to the country in 2016, ten years after that mission ended, as part of the coalition campaign against Islamic State, deploying to the Kurdistan region.

In 2007 Turkey selected the Mangusta for its attack and tactical reconnaissance helicopter (ATAK) programme, with Turkish Aerospace Industries as prime contractor and AgustaWestland as subcontractor. The T129 kept the basic airframe but switched to two LHTEC CTS800-4A engines, a five-blade rotor, a 20 mm three-barrel cannon and Turkish avionics, sights and weapons from Aselsan and Roketsan. The first prototype flew at Vergiate in Italy on 28 September 2009; it crashed during high-altitude hover tests near Verbania on 19 March 2010 after a loss of tail-rotor power. The first Turkish-built prototype flew in Ankara on 17 August 2011.

The ATAK programme grew into orders for the Turkish Land Forces and the Ministry of the Interior, including the gendarmerie and police. During Operation Olive Branch in northern Syria, a T129 came down on 10 February 2018 during operations around Afrin, killing its two crew; President Erdoğan said it had been shot down. Exports were complicated by the American-British engine: Pakistan agreed in 2018 to buy 30 for US$1.5 billion, but the United States never granted an export licence and in January 2022 Pakistan said it had moved on. The Philippines, Nigeria and Somalia did receive T129s, and Turkey began developing its own TS1400 engine to free the type from foreign licences.

• A129 Mangusta: original production version for the Italian Army with Gem 2 engines, TOW missiles and a four-blade rotor; in service from about 1990.
• A129 International: export demonstrator with LHTEC T800 engines, five-blade rotor and M197 20 mm cannon.
• A129 CBT / AH-129C: Italian combat version with upgraded transmission, five-blade rotor and 20 mm turret cannon.
• AH-129D (AW129D): upgrade available from 2013 with Rafael Toplite sight, Spike-ER missiles and new self-protection; 32 aircraft for front-line use.
• TAI T129 ATAK: Turkish development with CTS800-4A engines, Aselsan avionics and UMTAS, Cirit and Stinger missiles; first flight 28 September 2009.
• Leonardo AW249: new-design successor for the Italian Army, approved in 2016.

Neither Italy nor Turkey publishes operating costs for the Mangusta or the T129. The clearest public figures are export prices for the T129: Nigeria’s six were reported at an estimated US$45 million each, and the Philippines paid about US$269–280 million for six including support. With two light turboshafts and a take-off weight of four to five tonnes, the Mangusta is cheaper to operate than heavy gunships such as the Apache or Mi-28, but its modern sensors and weapons keep the cost of a flight hour in the thousands of US dollars.

Italy has planned the Mangusta’s replacement since 2016. In November that year the Senate defence committee approved the first phase of a programme for a new scout and escort helicopter, estimated at €487 million in 2016 prices for development and qualification between 2016 and 2025, citing the need to begin retiring the Mangusta from 2020. The result is the Leonardo AW249.