Army Notifies Bell Helicopter Textron It May Cancel ARH Program

Defense Daily, March 22, 2007

By Jen DiMascio

The Army has put Bell Helicopter Textron [TXT] on notice that it may cancel the Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) program in 30 days, according to a service official.

The contractor has that much time to tell the Army why it should continue with the program, Brig. Gen. Stephen Mundt, director of Army aviation in the deputy chief of staff of operations office, said yesterday, adding that he has always maintained that programs have to perform of face termination.

Cancelling the ARH would be a shame, Mundt said, because soldiers in the field have an urgent need for the aircraft.

The ARH program was created to replace the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior, also built by Bell, after the Army opted to cancel the RAH-66 Comanche helicopter program in early 2004.

In 2005, Bell won the $210.7 million cost-plus-incentive-fee contract to develop ARH (Defense Daily, Aug. 1, 2005). The Army wants 368 of the modified off-the-shelf helicopters and expects to equip its first unit with 30 aircraft by the end of fiscal year 2008.

The challenge of the program, which was created with existing subsystems, is primarily one of integration. As the program has progressed, issues with integration, development and escalating costs have cropped up, according to congressional aides.

Bell has not yet received a formal show cause letter from the Army, said spokeswoman Barbara Augone. But the company plans to work with the Army to determine the best path forward, she said, adding that the platform has logged 500 flight hours and continues to perform well.

[Copyright 2006 Access Intelligence, LLC. All rights reserved.]

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