The Army expects the suspense to end soon on whether it will embark on a new Armed Aerial Scout (AAS) program or continue on with and modernize older OH-58 Kiowa Warriors, according to the Army Training and Doctrine Command Capabilities Manager for Reconnaissance/Attack.
“We anticipate setting the Army position this quarter,” said Col. John Lynch yesterday at a breakfast meeting hosted by Boeing [BA].
Last month Army aviation officials made a recommendation to Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Lloyd Austin after a briefing on contractor flight demonstrations of potential AAS helicopters, Lynch said.
“Our recommendation was that we want to go forward and hold a competition,” Lynch said. The question would be how much capability the service needs.
The major question for the Army: “Can we afford it,” Lynch said. Essentially, program funds would come from the Army aviation budget, and other programs compete for the same funds.
In May, Pentagon chief acquisition official Frank Kendall issued an Acquisition Decision Memorandum basically telling the service to determine what it wants to do: breathe new life into the aging OH-58 Kiowa Warrior fleet, or start a new program.
Kiowa Warrior helicopters were initially produced by Bell Helicopter [TXT]. Those flying now were produced from 1968-1972, Lynch said.
A Request for Information in May led to contractor flight demonstrations. Among companies offering a capability were: the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co. (EADS), Boeing, Sikorsky [UTX] and Bell, Finmeccanica’s AgustaWestland North America, and MD Helicopters.
However, Austin wanted much more detail. Thus, he made no decisions, and aviation officials are preparing for a further briefing.
The timing of that briefing is now driving any Army decision. Austin, the last U.S. commander in Iraq, has been nominated to lead U.S. Central Command, potentially to lead U.S. forces out of Afghanistan. Austin must be confirmed by the Senate, which could mean an AAS decision could be left to a new vice chief of staff.
Additionally, at some point this spring, a DoD Defense Acquisition Board review is expected that will determine if the program moves forward as a new start program or enters at a specific acquisition milestone.
Also, the Army must ensure Congress understands its plans, since two other attempts at a new scout helicopter have been terminated over the past decade: the 2004 termination of the Boeing-Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche helicopter and the 2008 cancellation of the Bell Helicopter Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (Defense Daily, Feb. 24, 2004, Oct. 20, 2008).
No matter what the Army decides, Lynch said, there has to be a plan for Kiowa Warrior into the future since any AAS program won’t start replacing that fleet immediately. Current Kiowa Warrior work, on the cockpit and sensor, mainly address obsolescence issues, he said.
“Sooner is better” for any AAS decision, Lynch said.