The U.S. Air Force has reopened bidding for a $15 billion contract for search-and-rescue helicopters.
The move followed protests by Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. and Lockheed Martin Corp. after the Air Force awarded the original contract to Boeing Co. nearly a year ago.
Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne told the House Armed Services Committee that companies have until mid-November to submit bids, and that the Air Force expects to award a new contract in February
Stratford-based Sikorsky and Bethesda, Md.-based Lockheed Martin had protested the Air Force did not sufficiently factor in operational maintenance costs into the final award, which they claim would have bolstered their bids.
Chicago-based Boeing was awarded the contract for a version of its Chinook dual-rotor helicopter, beating out a variant of Sikorsky”™s S-92 helicopter and the US101 helicopter developed by Lockheed Martin and AgustaWestland, which has plants in Britain and Italy.
Separately, Sikorsky and Lockheed Martin are expected to vie for a Malaysian contract for up to 50 search and rescue helicopters, according to Flight International, replacing older Sikorsky models Malaysia currently uses.
Also, Sikorsky”™s new subsidiary in Poland made its first major purchase since Sikorsky bought the company last March. PZL Mielec is selling 15 midsized airplanes to a Chinese agriculture agency for use in crop dusting and firefighting. The company did not state financial terms.
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