Julian Moxon/PARIS
EUROCOPTER SAYS that it faces stagnation in the helicopter market "for the next five years", with a virtually no-growth forecast in military business until well into the next century.
Military sales account for the largest element of the Franco-German consortium's balance sheet, but are being hit by "extremely tough" competition from the USA, the arrival of new entrants in the market, the undervalued dollar and weak domestic demand.
In the 1997-2001 period, Eurocopter foresees a market for military helicopters outside the USA and the former Soviet Union, worth close to $3 billion a year.
The military figure will only start to grow significantly after 2006, when Eurocopter forecasts annual sales of around $4.3 billion. The civil market would be worth around $1.5 billion each year.
Highlighting the poor domestic prospects for military sales, Eurocopter notes that French Government orders between 1990 and 1995 stood at only 5% of the total, with the recent Loi de Programmation (defence white paper) calling for just four helicopters to be ordered. None of these are Tiger anti-tank helicopters or NH Industries NH-90 transport helicopters, says Eurocopter. It adds that the budget for Tiger and NH-90 has been reduced by 50% from the original number.
Eurocopter nevertheless claims to have maintained its position in the world market. It places itself second only to Sikorsky in terms of turnover, but complains that US manufacturers benefit from a "pax Americana", that excludes foreign entrants into the military market, as well as strong political support.
The Franco-German consortium adds that new entrants in the market also receive national support for their helicopter industries. It also claims that Russia has taken more than 20% of the international military market since the fall of the iron curtain.
Source: Flight International
