AgustaWestland AW139

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Secondo il sito dell'AFA ...

Existing UH-1N Bases Will Receive Replacement Helos ...

All bases that currently house UH-1N Hueys will receive the replacement for the aging aircraft, the Air Force announced Wednesday.

The service is in the process of replacing the 46-year-old UH-1N fleet, and hopes to award a contract by October after a pre-award protest by Sikorsky delayed the process.

The current UH-1N operating locations are Duke Field at Eglin AFB, Fla.; Fairchild AFB, Wash.; F.E. Warren AFB, Wyo.; JB Andrews, Md.; Kirtland AFB, N.M.; Malmstrom AFB, Mont.; and Minot AFB, N.D.

The helicopters are usually used for personnel transport and to protect USAF missile fields.

The Air Force will conduct an environmental impact analysis before the aircraft are based, with deliveries scheduled for 2020-2032, according to a USAF release (*).

- Brian Everstine

(*) ... http://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/1555854/existing-huey-bases-will-receive-replacement-aircraft/

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In attesa dell' agognata sostituzione ... un pugno di UH-1N di stanza in Giappone viene tenuto in  efficienza con cura certosina ...

The UH-1N aircrew and maintainers at Yokota AB, Japan, are among the smallest contingent flying the aging helicopter in the Air Force, and as such are the last to update the helicopters.
Nevertheless, the airmen keep their helicopters flying at a mission capable rate more than 90 percent as they fly VIPs throughout the Tokyo metropolitan area and train for search and rescue missions with the Japanese Air Self Defense Forces. 
"It's super reliable and cheap to fly," said TSgt. Nicholas Poe, an instructor and special missions aviator with the 459th Airlift Squadron at Yokota. 

Fonte: airforcemag.com ... Old USAF Hueys Maintain High Capability Rate in Japan ...

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Boeing Defense comunica ...

 

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Leonardo ... dal settore elicotteri arrivano buone notizie ... e il 139 continua ad essere il modello di maggior successo ...

https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/leonardo-raises-helicopter-production-450813/

http://www.leonardocompany.com/-/1h-2018-results

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Il capo dello STRATCOM esprime la propria irritazione per i ritardi accumulati dal programma destinato alla sostituzione dei vecchi elicotteri a guardia dei 'campi missilistici' ...

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Hyten Blasts Huey Replacement Process, Pledges a New Helo Eventually ..... 

The Air Force’s missile fields will get a new helicopter, no matter what, the head of US Strategic Command pledged Wednesday as the acquisition program continues to slow. 
“We’re going to get a new helicopter, if I’m going to die trying or kill somebody to do it,” STRATCOM boss Gen. John Hyten said Wednesday at the STRATCOM Deterrence Symposium in Omaha, Neb. 
The current process to replace the UH-1N Huey fleet is “taking way too long” as it has been slowed by protests by Sikorsky Corp. and delayed requests for proposals. 
In the meantime, Air Force Global Strike Command has upgraded its current fleet with new capabilities, such as better avionics, armament systems, and the ability to refuel at alert facilities, to make the helicopters more effective at its mission of protecting the missile fields. 
“That Huey is now armed, that Huey can now refuel at missile fields … it’s doing things a few years ago it couldn’t,” Hyten said. 

- Brian Everstine

 

Fonte: airforcemag.com ...

[engine]

" In the meantime, Air Force Global Strike Command has upgraded its current fleet with new capabilities, such as better avionics, armament systems, and the ability to refuel at alert facilities, to make the helicopters more effective at its mission of protecting the missile fields. 
“That Huey is now armed, that Huey can now refuel at missile fields … it’s doing things a few years ago it couldn’t,” Hyten said. 

- Brian Everstine  "

Allora che bisogno c'è di un nuovo elicottero ? 

Ooops ! Forse sono strutturalmente un po' vecchi.

Beh , se vogliono una nuova macchina , sanno a chi rivolgersi ......

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1 ora fa, engine ha scritto:

" In the meantime, Air Force Global Strike Command has upgraded its current fleet with new capabilities, such as better avionics, armament systems, and the ability to refuel at alert facilities, to make the helicopters more effective at its mission of protecting the missile fields. 
“That Huey is now armed, that Huey can now refuel at missile fields … it’s doing things a few years ago it couldn’t,” Hyten said. 

- Brian Everstine  "

Allora che bisogno c'è di un nuovo elicottero ? 

Ooops ! Forse sono strutturalmente un po' vecchi.

Beh , se vogliono una nuova macchina , sanno a chi rivolgersi ......

Un pò vecchi ... dici ?

Bè ... direi proprio di si ... e c'è, comunque, la possibilità di ulteriori ritardi ...

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/07/sitrep-the-air-forces-senior-citizen-chopper-may-have-to-hold-off-retirement/

 

 

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Sulla prossima sostituzione degli UH-1N ... un lungo commento apparso sullo 'Air Force Magazine' ...

... Huey Ever After ...

[tizi34]

https://www.defensenews.com/breaking-news/2018/09/24/the-air-force-picks-a-winner-for-its-huey-replacement-helicopter-contract/

 

BUM

Aspetto comunque i ricorsi al GAO prima di festeggiare

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Non me lo aspettavo ... 

A meno che non sia per noi un contentino per assegnare poi, sempre a Boeing, il ben più importante contratto T-X ...

Si tratta, comunque, di una significativa sconfitta per Sikorsky ... alias LM pigliatutto ...

 

 

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Il comunicato di 'Leonardo' ...

... U.S. AIR FORCE SCEGLIE L'ELICOTTERO MH-139, BASATO SUL BESTSELLER AW139 DI LEONARDO, PER LA PROTEZIONE DELLE BASI MISSILISTICHE E IL TRASPORTO DI PERSONALE GOVERNATIVO E FORZE SPECIALI ...

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Dalla pagina dei contratti del DoD del 24 Settembre 2018 ...

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The Boeing Co., Ridley Park, Pennsylvania, has been awarded a $375,550,368 firm-fixed-price contract for the non-developmental item integration of four aircraft to replace the UH-1N. 
This is the basic award of a contract (including options) valued at approximately $2,380,000,000, which will provide for the acquisition and sustainment of up to 84 MH-139 helicopters, training devices, and associated support equipment. 
The location of performance is predominantly in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 
If all options are exercised, the work is expected to be completed by September 2031. 
This award is a result of a competitive acquisition. 
Fiscal 2018 research, development, test, and evaluation funds in the amount of $98,000,000 are being obligated at the time of award.  
Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio,  is the contracting activity (FA8739-18-C-5030).

 

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10 ore fa, tizi34 ha scritto:

https://www.defensenews.com/breaking-news/2018/09/24/the-air-force-picks-a-winner-for-its-huey-replacement-helicopter-contract/

BUM

Aspetto comunque i ricorsi al GAO prima di festeggiare

Non posso che darti ragione ... tanto più che, secondo DefenseNews, dentro LM-Sikorsky non l'hanno presa bene ...

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Now that a winner has been declared, the biggest remaining question is whether the other competitors will protest the decision, a likely possibility given that the Huey replacement program is one of the few remaining ongoing aircraft contests planned by the Air Force for some time.
Throughout the course of the competition, Sikorsky’s HH-60U was seen as the frontrunner by analysts who pointed to the fact that the Air Force had initially sought to sole-source UH-60 Black Hawks to replace the UH-1N. 
The U-model was differentiated from the Army’s Black Hawk by the addition of a rescue hoist and electro-optical sensor, among other modifications.
“We are disappointed in the U.S. Air Force’s decision but remain confident the HH-60U Black Hawk is the strongest, most capable solution for the UH-1N Huey Replacement Program’s critical no-fail mission of protecting our nation’s nuclear missile silos and supporting the continuity-of-government mission,” Steve Callaghan, Sikorsky’s vice president for business development.

https://www.defensenews.com/breaking-news/2018/09/24/the-air-force-picks-a-winner-for-its-huey-replacement-helicopter-contract/

Quella è gente che ha fortissimi agganci all'interno di USAF (di cui una parte ha sempre sostenuto il loro elicottero) e Congresso ... per cui temo ci saranno da aspettarsi non pochi colpi bassi.

E vi sono, purtroppo, i ben noti precedenti di VH-71A e C-27J ...

[fabio-22raptor]

LM è difficile che faccia i salti di gioia e sicuramente, come prassi, farà ricorso. C'è da dire che il C-27J è stato un bel po' penalizzato dalla filosofia del buy american, cosa che stavolta dovrebbe essere mitigata da Boeing.

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2 ore fa, fabio-22raptor ha scritto:

LM è difficile che faccia i salti di gioia e sicuramente, come prassi, farà ricorso.

C'è da dire che il C-27J è stato un bel po' penalizzato dalla filosofia del buy american, cosa che stavolta dovrebbe essere mitigata da Boeing.

Non solo ... vi fu tutto un giro di manovre da parte di USAF e LM per scippare il programma all'US Army (che ne era, al principio, titolare) allo scopo di favorire il C-130J ... e chi si diede parecchio da fare fu, con tutta probabilità, questo signore ...

 

[Flaggy]

Se non altro questa volta l'elicottero se l'è scelto l'USAF e almeno il committente non cambierà (si spera nemmeno idea dopo il prevedibile e immancabile...ricorso).

Si spera poi che la genesi comunque italo-americana del prodotto (in origine 30% era Bell), la costuzione su una linea già presente in America e il peso massimo di Boeing (rispetto a L3 su cui poteva contare il C-27) possano mettere in secondo piano la sindrome da "not invented here" ed essere sufficienti a non far dimenticare che il 139 è un tantinello più moderno ed efficiente di un elicottero inventato ai tempi della guerra del Vietnam...

Modificato 25 Settembre 2018 da Flaggy

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Ancora da ... Boeing Defense ...

 

[Dragon_lady]

Segnalo questo articolo di ieri:
https://www.analisidifesa.it/2018/09/lusaf-sceglie-lelicottero-mh-139-basato-sullaw139-di-leonardo/

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DefenseNews commenta ...

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It was 2005 when it looked like Italy’s Leonardo - then known as Finmeccanica - had finally cracked the U.S. market with a prestigious deal to sell its AW101 helicopter to the White House.
Four years later, the so-called VH-71 deal to provide a new helicopter to fly the U.S. president began falling apart amid messy litigation and spiraling costs driven by ever-growing specification demands.
It’s this historical context that makes this week’s deal, primed by Boeing, to sell 84 militarized versions of Leonardo’s flagship AW139 helicopter to the Pentagon for $2.38 billion a sweet, if belated satisfaction for the Italian firm.
Boeing and Leonardo’s MH-139, which will now guard U.S. missile silos, beat the odds by seeing off competition from Lockheed Martin Sikorsky - ironic considering Lockheed Martin and Sikorsky were eventually handed the White House contract.
The MH-139 contract also follows Leonardo’s bitter disappointment when a 2007 deal to sell 78 of its C-27J tactical transport aircraft to the Pentagon unraveled, the victim of a turf war over funding between the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Army.

L'intero articolo ... https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2018/09/26/years-in-the-making-leonardo-finally-cracks-the-us-market/

 

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Qui c'è il commento 'semi-ufficiale' dell'USAF sul sito dell'AFA ...

http://www.airforcemag.com/Features/Pages/2018/September 2018/Boeing-Wins-Contract-to-Build-Huey-Replacement.aspx

Qui, invece, quello 'ufficiale' ...

https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/1643707/air-force-awards-contract-for-new-helicopter/

In questo lungo articolo di TheDrive ...

http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/23803/dark-horse-contender-boeing-snags-air-force-deal-to-replace-aging-uh-1n-hueys-with-mh-139

... un passo che induce a fare gli scongiuri ...

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It’s also important to point out that both Lockheed Martin and Sierra Nevada will have an opportunity to contest the award if they feel the Air Force acted improperly. 
This could delay the process or even up-end it entirely if federal watchdogs decide the contracting process was flawed.

 

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E meno male che l'USAF, nonostante i problemi che Boeing ha incontrato con il KC-46A, per quanto riguarda l'elicottero professa invece ottimismo ...

https://www.defensenews.com/air/2018/09/26/despite-kc-46-problems-air-force-optimistic-about-boeings-huey-replacement/

[Flaggy]

Basta non ci mettano le mani più del dovuto facendo schizzare alle stelle i costi. Più facile a dirsi che a farsi visto che di modifiche si è parlato esplicitamente.

Dalla sua l'elicottero ha un'innata capacità di adattamento che spero torni utile.

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Intanto ...

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Boeing has chosen FLIR Systems to provide the electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) surveillance sensor for the U.S. Air Force UH-1N replacement helicopters it is building in concert with Leonardo.
--- --- ---
The initial contract award to FLIR covers integration of the FLIR Star SAFIRE 380-HDc on ..... four helicopters. 
If chosen to continue the work on the remaining 80 helicopters the Air Force plans to buy, FLIR stands to pull in $40 million, the company said (*).

Fonte: rotorandwing.com ... FLIR Chosen To Provide Infrared Sensors For US Air Force Huey Replacement ...

(*) ... flir.com ... Boeing-Leonardo Team Selects FLIR Systems EO/IR Surveillance Sensors for US Strategic Command UH-1N Replacement Contract ...

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Prime consegne al Corpo Nazionale dei Vigili del Fuoco ...

flightglobal.com ... https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/picture-leonardo-delivers-first-firefighting-aw139-457596/ ...

vigilfuoco.it ... http://www.vigilfuoco.it/aspx/notizia.aspx?codnews=57144 ...