Airbus
Helicopters believes it is close to finalising an order with Poland for 50
H225M rotorcraft – some 18 months after the Caracal was provisionally selected
for the tri-service deal.
Warsaw
initially selected the 11t type in April 2015 – ahead of rival bids from
Leonardo and Sikorsky – but negotiations became bogged down following a change
of government later that year.
The deal has
now been cleared by the nation’s defence ministry, and Airbus Helicopters is
thrashing out the details of its offset package with the Polish ministry of
development.
|
|
Guillaume
Faury, the airframer’s chief executive, describes the discussions as “long and
demanding”, but thinks they are close to a positive outcome.
“We are now
in the final stage of these negotiations and I am of the opinion that we are
coming close to a conclusion,” he says.
Faury says
the talks have been “challenging” and have required the manufacturer to meet
“additional expectations” above the original tender.
“We have
worked very hard in the last months to fulfill the vast majority of those
expectations,” he says.
"The
negotiations for the offset contract for the purchase of the 50 Caracal
multirole helicopters are very difficult,” says development minister Mateusz
Morawiecki.
"But
negotiations like silence, so I can not disclose any details."
Bartosz Glowacki
As part of
its offset agreement, Airbus Helicopters had proposed setting up a production
line for Caracal in Lodz – there are already plants in France and Brazil – as
well engaging local industry as part of its supply chain.
But
questions emerged regarding how many of the H225Ms destined for the Polish
armed forces would be built locally; Airbus Helicopters was understood to be
planning to allow a certain number to be assembled for export to make up the
difference.
Faury
declines to be drawn on the detail of the offset package, but says that “a
total of 50 [Caracals] as a minimum” will be produced in Lodz “both for Poland
and for outside Poland”.
Export
examples could either be the military M-variant or the civil model, he says.
In addition,
Polish industry will be able to maintain H225Ms, both for its armed forces and
for export customers.
Despite
April’s fatal crash in Norway of a commercial H225 and subsequent European
Aviation Safety Agency grounding of the type for civil operations, Faury says
this has not impacted on the Polish negotiations. Military customers continue
to fly the platform, he notes.
Meanwhile,
Airbus Helicopters continues to wait for a formal tender from Warsaw for its
attack helicopter requirement.
Two requests
for information were previously issued – the most recent in late 2015 – as the
Polish land forces seek to replace a fleet of Mil Mi-24s, but there has been
nothing further.
The
manufacturer is proposing its Tiger helicopter for the requirement, with the
offset package likely to be similar to that offered for the H225M, says Faury.
Additional
reporting by Bartosz Glowacki in Kielce
Ingen kommentarer:
Legg inn en kommentar
Merk: Bare medlemmer av denne bloggen kan legge inn en kommentar.