Winner of arms contract to be announced next week
Winner of arms contract to be announced next week
The winner in a competition between an Italian firm and a U.S. company for a major program to jointly produce its military's next utility helicopter type will be chosen by Turkey next week. The two contenders for the $4 billion contract are the mainly Italian AgustaWestland and the U.S. Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.
The Defense Industry Executive Committee, Turkey's top decision-making body on defense procurement – whose members include Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan, Defense Minister Vecdi Gönül, Chief of General Staff Gen. Iþýk Koþaner and procurement chief Murad Bayar – apparently will meet on 15 December to decide the winner.
AgustaWestland is proposing its TUHP 149, a Turkish version of its A149, a newly developed utility helicopter. The A149's full prototype will have its first flight in January.
Sikorsky Aircraft is offering the T-70, the Turkish version of the S-70 Black Hawk International, which can be found in the inventories of dozens of countries around the world, including Turkey.
The competition is for a first batch of 109 utility helicopters, mostly for the military and security forces. But the number is expected to rise to about 300 in later years.
The Defense Industry Executive Committee, Turkey's top decision-making body on defense procurement – whose members include Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan, Defense Minister Vecdi Gönül, Chief of General Staff Gen. Iþýk Koþaner and procurement chief Murad Bayar – apparently will meet on 15 December to decide the winner.
AgustaWestland is proposing its TUHP 149, a Turkish version of its A149, a newly developed utility helicopter. The A149's full prototype will have its first flight in January.
Sikorsky Aircraft is offering the T-70, the Turkish version of the S-70 Black Hawk International, which can be found in the inventories of dozens of countries around the world, including Turkey.
The competition is for a first batch of 109 utility helicopters, mostly for the military and security forces. But the number is expected to rise to about 300 in later years.
