VH-71 Kestrel
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| VH-71 "Kestrel" | |
|---|---|
 VH-71 undergoing testing near the Lockheed facility in Owego, NY |
|
| Type | Executive transport helicopter |
| Manufacturer | AgustaWestland Bell Helicopter (assembly) |
| Maiden flight | July 3, 2007 |
| Introduced | 2010 (Planned) |
| Status | Testing |
| Primary user | United States Marine Corps |
| Produced | 2010-2015 (Planned) |
| Number built | 28 (Planned) |
| Unit cost | $400 million (average procurement cost)[1] |
| Developed from | AgustaWestland EH101 |
The VH-71 Kestrel, a variant of the AgustaWestland EH101, is being developed to replace the United States Marine Corps' Marine One Presidential transport fleet. It is being produced by the Lockheed Martin-led "US101 Team" of Lockheed Martin Systems Integration - Owego, AgustaWestland and Bell Helicopter.
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[edit] Development
[edit] EH101
The EH101 was developed by EH Industries, a joint venture of the British Westland Aircraft and Italian Agusta companies. The aircraft first flew on October 9, 1987, and entered service with the Royal Navy in 2000.
[edit] US101
On 23 July 2002 Lockheed Martin and AgustaWestland signed a 10-year agreement to jointly market, produce and support a medium-lift helicopter, an EH101 derivative called US101, in the United States.[2] The companies envisaged marketing the aircraft in three roles; US Air Force combat search and rescue, US Coast Guard search and rescue, and US Marine Corps executive transport.
On May 15, 2003 AgustaWestland signed an agreement with Bell Helicopter to undertake final assembly of the US101 in the United States.[3] AgustaWestland will produce the main rotor blades and main fuselage sections at its Yeovil, UK facility. The company will produce other components, including the gearbox, at its Cascina Costa, Italy facility. This represents a work share of 36%. The remaining 64% work share is split between Lockheed Martin (31%) and Bell Helicopter (27%) and others (6%).[4]
[edit] VXX competition
The U.S. Department of Defense issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) on December 18, 2003 for the supply of 23 helicopters to replace the 11 VH-3Ds and 8 VH-60Ns of USMC HMX-1 squadron. This requirement was given the designation VXX (V being the prefix for VIP aircraft and XX representing the then unspecified numerical part of the designation).
Both AgustaWestland and Sikorsky responded to the RFP. Sikorsky proposed the VH-92, a variant of the H-92 Superhawk, in partnership with FlightSafety International, L-3 Communications, Northrop Grumman, Rockwell Collins, Vought Aircraft Industries, and GE-Aviation.
On January 28, 2005 the Department of Defense announced that it had selected the US101 for the VXX program. The US101 team was awarded a $1.7 billion contract for the VXX system development and demonstration (SDD) phase.[5] The price of the development later rose by 40% to $2.4 billion. [6] The full cost of the project is estimated at $6.1Bn,[7] although some analysts expect the cost to rise above $7Bn, making this the most expensive helicopter ever, with a unit cost of $270m.[8]
As of March 2008 the program cost totaled $11.2b, making each helicopter more expensive than the Boeing 747-based VC-25s that serve as Air Force One after adjustment for inflation.[1][9]
[edit] VXX program problems and delays
In addition to rising costs, delays and engineering issues have plagued the VH-71's development.[10] During the ongoing CSAR-X contract controversy (in which the EH101 is LMSI's offering), the Air Force source selection authority has, on several occasions, referred to Lockheed's VH-71 program as having "unsatisfactory performance". These concerns with the VH-71 have caused the Air Force to cast doubts on LMSI's ability to supply helicopters for a potential CSAR program award; in March 2007 the initial GAO report which upheld Sikorsky and Lockheed's contract award protests versus Boeing's HH-47 mentioned "that LMSI had received a little confidence rating for past performance due to unsatisfactory performance under its current contract for the VH-71 Presidential helicopter, which was evaluated as the most highly relevant to this procurement. According to the SSA, LMSI had “show[n under that contract] that it could not reliably meet important schedule requirements and had difficulty in systems engineering flow-downs to their subcontractors.” [11]
In December 2007, DoD officials met with the White House Military Office to discuss the VH-71 program's future, as the Pentagon apparently wished to terminate the program due to multiple setbacks, budget issues, and design problems. The White House overruled a cancellation decision and the program was essentially put on hold while options are considered.[12]
[edit] Testing
The first test VH-71A, Test Vehicle #2 (TV2), made its initial flight on July 3, 2007 at AgustaWestland’s facility in Yeovil, UK.[13] Lockheed Martin is already using an EH101, designated TV-1, for initial testing in the USA, including landings on the White House lawn.
[edit] Variants
- VH-71A
- VH-71B
[edit] Other competitions
The US101 is also competing for two USAF contracts, the 141-aircraft Combat Search and Rescue Replacement (CSAR-X) project (originally won by the Boeing HH-47 on 10 November 2006, but now subject to a second procurement competition), and the 70-aircraft Common Vertical Lift Support Program (CVLSP).[14]
[edit] Operators
- United States Marine Corps (on order).
[edit] Specifications (EH-101)
Specifications with an asterisk (*) next to them are specifically for the VH-71
Data from MSN article[1]
General characteristics
- Crew: 4
- Capacity:
- 14 seated troops* or
- 45 standing troops or
- 16 stretchers with medics
- Length: 74 ft 10 in* (22.81 m)
- Rotor diameter: 61 ft 0 in (18.59 m)
- Height: 21 ft 10 in (6.65 m)
- Disc area: 2,992 ft² (271 m²)
- Empty weight: 23,150 lb (10,500 kg)
- Useful load: 5,443 kg (12,000 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 34,320 lb (15,600 kg)
Performance
- Never exceed speed: 167 knots (192 mph, 309 km/h)
- Range: 750 NM (863 mi, 1,389 km)
- Service ceiling 15,000 ft (4,575 m)
- Rate of climb: 2,000 ft/min (10.2 m/s)
- Disc loading: 53.8 kg/m² (11.01 lb/ft²)
[edit] See also
Related development
Comparable aircraft
Related lists
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Cost Soars For Marine One Copter Fleet" The Washington Post, March 23, 2008.
- ^ "Lockheed Martin and AgustaWestland Announce Long-term Agreement for US101 Helicopter" Lockheed Martin Corp. July 23, 2002 (Press release)
- ^ "AgustaWestland Selects Bell Helicopter as Airframe Manufacturer for US101 Production"
- ^ "US101 Blows Away Sikorsky in $6.1 Billion VXX Competition" Air Forces Monthly
- ^ "Lockheed Martin to Build New Presidential Helicopter" U.S. Department of Defense January 28, 2005
- ^ "Presidential helicopter costs soar", flightglobal.com May 22, 2007.
- ^ TY: Feature creep and the new Marine One (VH-71)
- ^ VH-71 “Kestrel” / VXX Vertical Lift Aircraft
- ^ "Executive Branch Strikes VH-71 Deal" Aerospace Daily and Defense Report, March 17, 2008.
- ^ "Development hurdles ahead for future presidential helicopter" aionline.com
- ^ "B-299145.4, Sikorsky Aircraft Company; Lockheed Martin Systems, March 29, 2007" gao.gov
- ^ "VH-71 Presidential Helicopter on Hold" DefenseNews.com December 14, 2007
- ^ "First VH-71 presidential helicopter flies" flightglobal.com, July 5, 2007.
- ^ "CSAR-X" www.teamus101.com
[edit] External links
- Lockheed Martin VH-71 Kestrel Video
- Lockheed Martin VH-71
- "Trouble On The Takeoff" Newsweek, November 26, 2007
- "VH-71 Presidential Helicopter on Hold" Defense News
- "Costs soar for new Marine One fleet" MSNBC, March 16, 2008
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