Poland left the Sikorsky company out of business

The Polish Defense Ministry announced the winners of the two competitions for the supply of transport helicopters and air defense missiles.

The tender winners: helicopter Airbus H225M Caracal, won previously planned Sikorsky S-70; anti-aircraft guided missile system of the Raytheon Patriot system won the tender against the MBDA / Thales Aster 30 system.

This decision on the tender dealt a blow to the pockets and reputation of the American helicopter engineering enterprise Sikorski, which, in turn, was the first western manufacturer of helicopters to invest in the Polish aerospace industry. The Polish Ministry of Defense explained: Sikorsky S-70 was not chosen for a number of formal and technical reasons, besides the delivery schedules were supposed to be very long. 

Representatives of the company otveliti that "extremely disappointed" with the given circumstance. The third bidder on the tender was the company AgustaWestland with AW149
 
The representative of Airbus explained that the Airbus H225M Caracal helicopter probably best meets the selection criteria from the Polish colleagues, as it offers a single platform and high-speed assembly of equipment. 

Airbus H225M Caracal

In Poland Is located office Heli Invest, which is a partner of Airbus, in "polish the contract" and the company will play a significant role in the local production of helicopters.

Until now Heli Invest has entered into a distributor and maintenance of helicopters and Airbus in the civil engineering sector. Final assembly of the helicopters will take place in Lodz (city in Poland), where Airbus Helicopers recently opened a research and development center. The first copies of the Polish "caracals" will be built at the Airbus plant in Marignane (France), where he will study the Polish workers. Manufacturer Turbomeca engines will also perform final assembly in Poland.

Airbus representative has not commented on reports about the cost of the bids on the tender: 2 300 000 000 € ($ 2,3 billion). However, the contract will not be signed until the Polish side carries out a full technical assessment and tests the H225M helicopter, which are scheduled for May-June 2015. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2017.

In accordance with a requirement issued in March 2013, the new program aims to replace Russian helicopters Mi-17 / Mi-8 TTH for the Army and the country Mi-14 for the Navy.

Poland is currently going to announce a tender for the purchase of 25-30 attack helicopters. A recent statement from the country's Department of Defense suggests a quick exit to the deal.

Also, eight Patriot missile batteries will be purchased from the United States (Foreign Military Sales (FMS)). The first two will arrive within three years after signing the contract. 

Ivan BERESNEV specifically for Avia.pro