Julian Moxon/MARIGNANE
NH Industries is offering Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden parallel delivery of the first production NH90 transport helicopters in a bid to win the Nordic Standard Helicopter programme competition in which the four countries are participating.
The move comes as the decision to go ahead with the production of an initial 244 NH90s is expected at June's ILA 2000 show in Berlin. This would clear the way for delivery to the German army in 2003, the same time as the Nordic countries have specified first delivery of their helicopters.
NHI partners Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands foresee production of up to 600 machines in several army and navy versions. The Nordic countries will decide on who will supply between 50 and 100 helicopters in the third quarter, the final number depending on the size of the helicopter selected.
Competition is intense, with EH Industries' EH101, Eurocopter's Cougar MkII/MkII-Plus and Sikorsky's S-92 also in the running.
The critical factor for NHI was to be able to offer the NH90 on the back of a definite order from the partner countries, with an associated delivery commitment. The 2003 Nordic delivery deadline had put pressure on vital early production slots, until a deal was struck enabling France, which does not take its first NH90s until 2005/6, to produce all export versions.
Eurocopter co-chairman Siegfried Sobotta says this will avoid the "paper tiger" problem with the French-German Tiger attack helicopter. This failed to win early export orders because of lack of commitment by the two partners.
France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands shouldered 42%, 24%, 27% and 7%of the NH90 development work, but France's low initial offtake would have left it with less production work than was justified by its investment.
Source: Flight International
