European-made helicopters are unlikely to be eligible for a possible recompetition of the US Army armed reconnaissance helicopter (ARH) contract.
Before Bell beat Boeing three years ago to win the original contract, AgustaWestland hoped to propose either the A109, A119, A129 or AW139 and Eurocopter wanted to offer AS550 or EC635.
Both European bidders were disqualified early in the original competition. Neither AgustaWestland nor Eurocopter could meet one of the army's key performance parameters: the ability to offload and fly two helicopters from a Lockheed Martin C-130 within 15 minutes.
Army aviation acquisition chief Paul Bogosian, speaking to me on the sidelines of the Association of the US Army (AUSA) convention earlier this week, affirmed that requirement remains a deal-breaker for the army if the contract is re-competed.
Before Bell beat Boeing three years ago to win the original contract, AgustaWestland hoped to propose either the A109, A119, A129 or AW139 and Eurocopter wanted to offer AS550 or EC635.
Both European bidders were disqualified early in the original competition. Neither AgustaWestland nor Eurocopter could meet one of the army's key performance parameters: the ability to offload and fly two helicopters from a Lockheed Martin C-130 within 15 minutes.
Army aviation acquisition chief Paul Bogosian, speaking to me on the sidelines of the Association of the US Army (AUSA) convention earlier this week, affirmed that requirement remains a deal-breaker for the army if the contract is re-competed.
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