Procurement of a new battlefield transport through the UK’s New Medium Helicopter (NMH) programme continues to progress, with sole bidder Leonardo Helicopters having recently submitted its best and final offer to the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
The move follows the successful conclusion of negotiations between the pair in April.
Should that offer be accepted by the MoD, and subject to governmental approval, then a contract is expected later this year.
Nigel Colman, managing director of Leonardo Helicopters UK, says: “Following successful negotiations with the Ministry of Defence, we have submitted our ‘best and final offer’ for the New Medium Helicopter programme.
“Our bid, to offer the AW149 helicopter made at the Home of British Helicopters in Yeovil, fulfils the immediate capability requirements of the UK armed forces and will maintain a vital part of our onshore defence industrial base.
“We are also confident that our offer represents value for money in sustaining British jobs, skills, innovation and growth.”
Leonardo’s AW149 emerged as the sole contender for NMH when rivals Airbus Helicopters and Sikorsky pulled out of the competition in August 2024.
The MoD’s Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) agency, which is managing the procurement, says Leonardo’s proposal “will be evaluated through 2025 when, subject to government approvals, a contract award is anticipated”.
However, it declines to comment further, citing sensitivities around the competition.
Additionally, the number of airframes specified in the proposal has not been disclosed.
When the NMH contest launched in 2022, the MoD said it was seeking a range of “up to 44 platforms”. However, this figure subsequently fell to 23-32 aircraft, sources told FlightGlobal, as the number of helicopter types to be replaced by the NMH also dwindled.
At its outset, the NMH was supposed to supplant the Royal Air Force’s (RAF’s) Puma HC2s – which were retired in March – plus Bell 212/412s operated in Brunei and Cyprus and the Airbus Helicopters AS365 Dauphins operated by the Army Air Corps for domestic special forces support.
But the already retired Bell helicopters in Brunei and Cyprus are now being replaced by six Airbus Helicopters H145 Jupiter HC2s.
Ordered in April last year, an initial four examples are at the manufacturer’s UK base at Oxford airport for modification work, with two more expected to arrive in 2026.
Delivery of the first Jupiter HC2 to the MoD is anticipated “quite shortly”, Airbus Helicopters says, paving the way for service entry next year.
Short-term cover for the retired Bell fleets was provided by the Puma HC2s, but this summer will see RAF Boeing CH-47 Chinooks acting as a stand-in on the Cyprus operation.
Meanwhile, the MoD is already attempting to sell off the mothballed Puma fleet.
To date, the helicopters – which entered UK service in the 1970s – have not been listed by the MoD among its inventory of equipment held for sale.
However, FlightGlobal understands that the helicopters were presented to delegations from three African nations – Benin, Ghana and Togo – at RAF Benson in March.
The MoD had not responded to questions on its plans for the Pumas by the time this article went to press.
