Canadian helicopter tender..a familiar story?

[ForkTailedDevil]

In terms of tenders you may find this of interest

http://www.sikorsky.com/details/0,3036,CLI1_DIV69_ETI1844,00.html

The Maritime Helicopter Team Selected to Replace Sea Kings

Jul. 23, 2004
- Ottawa -- The Government of Canada today announced the selection of the Sikorsky Aircraft-led Maritime Helicopter Team to replace Sea King helicopters currently in service with the Canadian Forces.

The selection was made as part of Canada's $3-billion Maritime Helicopter Project (MHP) for the acquisition of 28 aircraft. The Maritime Helicopter Team will furnish the Sikorsky H-92 SUPERHAWK medium-lift helicopter and support services over the next 20 years. The first helicopter will be delivered in 2008.

Canada's new H-92s will be multi-mission capable and will perform anti-submarine patrols, surveillance and ship-borne duties, and a wide range of utility roles such as Search and Rescue support, cargo and personnel transport, and disaster relief support.

"Sikorsky has been a part of Canada's history for more than 50 years, and we are proud to continue this legacy," said Sikorsky President Steve Finger. "The MHP specifications are rightfully among the most demanding in the world. There is no better aircraft to fulfill these missions than the H-92."

Sikorsky Aircraft has reiterated its long-term commitment to Canada by joining with two leading Canadian companies to form The Maritime Helicopter Team. General Dynamics Canada, based in Ottawa, Ontario, is responsible for the H-92 systems integration and will furnish a 100 percent Canadian-developed and built Mission Data Management System. L-3 MAS Canada, based in Mirabel, Quebec, brings proven performance in long-term in-service support for the Canadian Forces.

"General Dynamics Canada has been serving our Armed Forces since 1948, and we have consistently proven our capability to successfully complete large, technically complex projects," said GD Canada's President John Watts. "Our team of qualified and dedicated workers are eager to provide the H-92 with a world-class Integrated Mission System. We will draw on the extensive systems integration experience we have gained over the years to ensure the success of the MHP programme."

Sylvain Bédard, President of L-3 Communications MAS Canada added: "We are pleased with the selection of the MHT which will provide the Canadian Forces with the next generation maritime helicopter. Our Sikorsky-led team recognizes the advantages of the safety and reliability inherent in the H-92 design and capitalizes on the strength of the Canadian industry partners--GD Canada providing the mission suite and L-3 MAS with the leading role for the provision of in-service support.

"This selection continues the long-standing L-3 MAS tradition as the leading provider of quality, responsive and innovative solutions in support of the Canadian Air Force operational requirements."

The Sikorsky H-92 Maritime Helicopter Team was selected over the AgustaWestland team and its EH-101 Cormorant offering. A Lockheed Martin/NH Industries consortium NH-90 proposal was eliminated earlier this year.

The H-92 flies faster, farther, is safer, carries more and costs less to operate than its MHP competitor. It builds on the heritage of five million flight hours achieved through the Sea Stallion, SEAHAWK and BLACK HAWK aircraft, and the Sikorsky Sea King that has served the Canadian Forces for more than four decades.

Breaking new ground for medium-weight helicopters, the H-92 provides unprecedented levels of safety and reliability. It is the only rotorcraft in the world certified to the latest FAA, EASA and JAA safety regulations and is designed to the latest specifications for flaw tolerance, bird strike capability and turbine burst protection.
__________________________________________________ _
A strange choice since the EH101 Comorants are in service with the Canadian forces already

[Goldie fish]

Their heli replacment programme is almost as complex and tragic as ours,having already been cancelled once. The canadian Seakings are literally falling out of the sky. Have you heard of the sea king song?

[futurepilot]

Apparently the Canadian Airforce is disappointed with the choice as they prefered the EH101 but the politicians decided that they knew better than the people who`d actually be using them.

[combatlogo]

Have you heard of the sea king song?

No - care to share it? Can't be as bad as the "Phrog songs"....

Their heli replacment programme is almost as complex and tragic as ours,having already been cancelled once. The canadian Seakings are literally falling out of the sky.

The decline of the Canadian Armed Forces is a sad tale - they had the world's 3th/4th largest navy in WW II and played a vital role on D-Day and in the Battle of the Atlantic......however, years of neglect and Political Correctness have reduced a once-proud military heritage to tatters....

[Goldie fish]

Sea Kings in the Sun
(Sung to the tune of Seasons in the Sun)

Goodbye papa please pray for me
My helicopter's crashing in the sea
I honestly don't mean to pout,
but my future is in doubt,
My co-pilot just fell out.

Goodbye papa it's hard to fly,
When my airframe’s cracking in the sky,
For every hour in the air,
it takes them 30 to repair,
We fly these things on a dare.

We've had joy, we've had fun,
We've had Sea Kings in the sun,
But the engines are on fire,
and the Sea Kings must retire,

Goodbye Chrétien my stingy one,
You could have bought the EH-101,
Instead you blew 500 mil,
Just to cancel out the bill,
Now I need an airsick pill.

We've had joy, we've had fun,
We've had Sea Kings in the sun
We'll be lucky if we reach,
a crash landing on the beach.

http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/11-21-2002-30759.asp

[faughanballagh]

they had the world's 3th/4th largest navy in WW II

And when the Gulf War began Iraq had the world's 4th largst army. We all know how that one went down.

Those hoser bastards seem to think they're better than us. They change their aircraft designations so all of them have a "C" in front-so for example a F-18 becomes a CF-18. I guess if one crashes this protects the manufacturer from responsibility? :D

[Goldie fish]

Originally posted by futurepilot
Apparently the Canadian Airforce is disappointed with the choice as they prefered the EH101 but the politicians decided that they knew better than the people who`d actually be using them.

Associated Press
Canada Picks Sikorsky Helicopter for Fleet
07.23.2004, 05:08 PM

After decades of delay and political wrangling, Canada announced Friday it has chosen the Sikorsky H-92 helicopter to replace its fleet of Sea Kings. U.S.-based Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. said the $2.4 billion purchase of 28 helicopters was its largest order of the year.

Canadian Defense Minister Bill Graham, only four days into his new job, made the announcement before a squadron of Sea King helicopter pilots and crew gathered at a military base near Halifax.

"The country will be getting a robust maritime helicopter that will meet our military needs for many years to come," he said.

The twin-engine helicopter has been touted as the less-expensive option over its rival, the larger, three-engine EH-101 Cormorant, built by a British-Italian consortium led by EH Industries.

"We're absolutely thrilled," said Sheena Steiner, a spokeswoman for Sikorsky, which is a unit of United Technologies Corp. of Hartford, Conn.

She said the helicopters will be built at the company's plant in Bridgeport, Conn., but said it was too soon to predict the impact on jobs. "We're certainly going to be gearing up the production line to get the H-92s into production."

Sikorsky, which is working with two Canadian companies on the contract, said the new helicopters will perform anti-submarine patrols, surveillance and ship-borne duties, search and rescue support, cargo and personnel transport and disaster relief support.

"Sikorsky has been part of Canada's history for more than 50 years, and we are proud to continue this legacy," said Sikorsky president Steve Finger. "The MHP specifications are rightfully among the most demanding in the world. There is no better aircraft to fulfill these missions than the H-92."

Despite Friday's announcement, the Sea Kings will be kept flying for the next four years as the helicopters are built to the military's specifications, said Scott Brison, Canada's federal minister of public works. After that, the new helicopters will be delivered at a rate of one per month over the following 27 months.

"The winning bidder had to satisfy us on technical compliance, agree to our contractual conditions ... provide substantial regional, industrial benefits to companies across Canada and finally, provide the lowest total price," Brison said.

However, one veteran airman questioned the lengthy process and the military merits of the final choice.

"This announcement is long, long overdue," said Sgt. Phil Moffitt, a Halifax-based airman who retires next fall after 27 years of working aboard and flying Sea Kings, which were also made by Sikorsky.

He said he would have preferred the Cormorants over the Sikorsky aircraft, a sentiment shared by many in the military.

"We already have that aircraft (the Cormorant) in the Canadian Forces. It would be better for cross training for technicians and air crew," he said.

Friday's announcement closed a saga that began in the 1980s, when Canada set out to replace its fleet of maritime helicopters, otherwise known as the CH-124 Sea Kings - also a Sikorsky product.

Canada's defense department has long pushed to have the government to buy the more expensive Cormorant.

A $4.4 billion contract in 1992 for 50 EH-101 helicopters - essentially a fancier version of the Cormorant - was canceled after former Liberal prime minister Jean Chretien was elected in 1993. He called them an unaffordable "Cadillac" helicopter.

His move cost taxpayers $375 million in penalties and became a lightning rod for those who argued the Liberal government was set on destroying Canada's military.

The Sea Kings now require about 30 hours of maintenance for every hour of flying time, and there have been four fatal crashes that have claimed at least 10 lives.

The Defense Department purchased 15 Cormorants similar to the EH-101 in 1998 for $593 million to replace a search and rescue fleet.

On the New York Stock Exchange, United Technologies shares fell 51 cents Friday to close at $92.09

[FMolloy]

Keep the topic on track Faugh....