Andrzej Jeziorski/MUNICH
Germany's planned upgrade of its navy's fleet of 17 GKN Westland Sea Lynx Mk 88 helicopters is being threatened by soaring costs, with the price rising by 110% above original estimates.
The defence ministry is refusing to accept the price rise, driven by an increase in the value of sterling which has risen to above DM3 to the pound compared to DM2.2 when the deal was first negotiated. A decision to have the work done by Eurocopter Deutschland, rather than by Westland in the UK, has also contributed to the cost spiral. The contract was originally valued at about DM150 million.
Sources close to the negotiations say that the price hike has stimulated fierce opposition from defence lobbyists hoping for a firm commitment from the ministry to the NH Industries NH90 multi-role helicopter, with some calling for the cancellation of the Sea Lynx upgrade as an unnecessary burden on an already tight defence budget. The German navy has been examining cheaper alternatives to a dedicated naval version of the NH90, known in Germany as the MH90.
The Lynx upgrade programme was first discussed together with the navy's DM312.5 million procurement of a new batch of seven Super Lynx Mk 88A helicopters, to be delivered next year.
That contract was signed in late 1996, and the upgrade contract was initially expected to follow soon afterwards.
The upgrade is intended to bring the navy's Sea Lynx fleet up to the standard of the new helicopters, although talks are now taking place to examine reducing the scope of the upgrade to cut costs. Other options being examined include obtaining avionics components directly from the supplier, rather than via Westland.
Westland declines to comment on the price increase, but confirms that talks are continuing on the contract. "It's by no means certain that [the programme] will go ahead, but the prospects are good," it says.
Germany's new Super Lynx helicopters are equivalent to the UK Royal Navy's Lynx HMA Mk 8, with a 360í radar, forward looking infrared, composite main rotor blades and reverse direction tail rotor. They will be powered by Rolls-Royce Gem 42 engines, and will have anti-submarine and anti-surface vessel capabilities.
Current planning is that the Sea Lynx will only be replaced in around 2015, after the MH90 has already replaced the navy's fleet of 22 Westland Sea King Mk 41 helicopters. The navy wants 38 MH90s, which are to be delivered over 15 years from 2007.
Source: Flight International
