Sikorsky is better positioned to deal with the economic fall-out from 11 September than most other manufacturers because its business is heavily weighted towards the military sector.
That was the view of president Dean Borgman, speaking as the show got under way.
"Of course we have the S-76 which is an important aircraft for us," says Borgman, "but the majority of our helicopters do not operate in the civil sector.
"The general outlook is that we are likely to see additional defence spending in many places around the world, but particularly in the US and we hope to be in a position to win some of that business."
Borgman believes Singapore and the Pacific Rim in general remains a strategically important area and one of the key growth markets in the years ahead. Sikorsky is engaged in crucial competitions in Singapore itself, where it is bidding the S-70 Seahawk, and also in Japan with the S-92.
Stresses
Borgman is bullish about the prospects for both. "We believe we stand a good chance, but as with all these competitions we need to wait and see what unfolds."
Borgman stresses the S-92's importance to Sikorsky, not only as the company's newest entrant into the marketplace but because of the technology improvement platform it provides for further growth of the Black Hawk family.
"This is key for us," he explains. "With the UH-60M upgrade ahead of us and beyond that plans for the UH-60X, we plan to implement what we have learned on S-92 and make those Black Hawk growth derivatives as effective as they can possibly be.
"I guess I won't be in this job to talk with you in 10 years time, but you can bet that Black Hawk will still be a viable and thriving programme. That says so much about what we have achieved with the aircraft and how satisfied our customers are with its performance."
Source: Flight Daily News
