PHILADELPHIA–Boeing [BA] and Italy’s Leonardo said May 1 they are confident their MH-139 is the best value to the taxpayer for the UH-1N Huey helicopter replacement program.
Boeing revealed in March it will offer the MH-139 helicopter, based on Leonardo’s AW-139. Under the arrangement Boeing is the prime contractor with Leonardo acting as its key subcontractor, providing the air frame.
The UH-1N Replacement Program is planning to replace the Air Force’s full Huey fleet with 84 new helicopters. The rotorcraft will have the dual mission of protecting Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) and launch sites as well as provide emergency transportation to support Continuity of Government Operations missions in Washington, D.C.
Boeing and Leonardo explained the helicopter’s production process during a tour of Leonardo Helicopter’s facility at Northeast Philadelphia Airport and a flight aboard an MH-139 model for reporters. If Boeing were to win the contract, the MH-139 would be built there, William Hunt, CEO of Leonardo Helicopters Philadelphia, said.
Hunt highlighted the helicopter is fully customized during production, inducting kits the customer asks for in the build cycle so they do not produce a basic aircraft then move it to a modification center. The AW-139 currently offers over 300 kits for the aircraft, depending on the mission and customer.
Hunt also said Leonardo would not have to expand its production line to accommodate the potential MH-139 order because production time is more important than space in the facility.
The rotorcraft currently takes 80 days from start to induction for delivery to customers at the Philadelphia facility, including flight line testing, paint, and interior work. Leonardo said the AW-139 has a compliance avionics package similar to a G5 Gulfstream and uses two Pratt & Whitney PT6 engines. Pratt & Whitney is a division of United Technologies [UTX].
The press event came after the U.S. Air Force released its second draft request for proposal (RFP) for the program on April 20. Dave Koopersmith, vice president and general manager of Boeing Vertical Lift, said the company cannot comment on their responses to the second draft RFP because that is between them and the government.
“We still firmly believe we are the low cost to acquire, low cost to operate, highly reliable, proven in the crucible of the commercial environment,” he said.
The companies highlighted that Leonardo has produced over 900 AW-139s, including 260 made in the Philadelphia facility. “So we’re about a third, normally, of the production rate that comes out of the worldwide global,” Hunt added.
Leonardo, which is headquartered in Italy, noted that AW-139s made at this facility have been sold to international civilian and military customers in Egypt, Central America, South America, Australia, Malaysia, Abu Dhabi, Japan, and South Korea in various configurations. The Philadelphia plant is also the origin of Foreign Military Sales (FMS) contracts sent through the Defense Department.
Hunt said customers of the AW-139 have flown for over 10,000 hours. Combined, the AW-139s in use have accrued about 1.7 million flight hours over 10 years.
Boeing and Leonardo characterized the MH-139 as a good fit for the replacement program because it has already been flying for years. JD Clem, director of Leonardo’s Air Force division, said all the features the Air Force wants on the replacement unit have already installed on variants of the AW-139, so the company just needs to ensure the specified systems and kits are properly working, integrated, and validated.
The AW-139 can fit 15 seats in the cabin, has a 30 percent larger cabin than the Huey, weighs 5,000 pounds less, and cruises at 165 knots compared to the UH-1N’s 110 knots maximum. It has a range of over 500 nautical miles but that can be extended with auxiliary fuel tanks.
Boeing explained it contributes to the MH-139 offering as the prime integrator, working with customers to provide secure aircraft kits and using the Leonardo airframe.
Boeing also noted it is looking to talk further with the Air Force during a set of Industry Days on May 8-9 for the program as some requirements have changed between the first and second draft RFP.
“We need to understand, from their perspective, why they’re doing that and is there something we’re not understanding in what they’ve been communicating,” Rick Lemaster, director of the UH1N replacement program capture team lead at Boeing Vertical Lift, said.
Boeing has not discussed the RFP changes with the Air Force yet but after the industry day “we’ll have a better understanding of what they’re looking to accomplish with this latest change,” Lemaster added.
Boeing predicted the MH-139 would provide about $1 billion in savings over 20 years compared to a similar competitor’s offering.
Boeing separately has its own rotorcraft facility in the Ridley Park, a suburb of Philadelphia.