Bell Helicopter has begun to show the Army the capabilities it could offer by further upgrading and extending the life of the ageless OH-58 Kiowa Warrior scout helicopter.
Bell spokesman Greg Hubbard said demonstrations flights began Monday in Fort Worth for what Bell is calling the OH-58 Block II upgrade, a prototype of what the company says is a cost-effective way to significantly improve the Kiowa's capabilities."The Army has limited money so why would they go to an all-new aircraft with all the added costs of training and logistics that would include?" Hubbard said.Army aviation experts are conducting extensive meetings with contractors and, in the case of Bell and EADS North America, flying demonstrations as they evaluate whether the service needs and can afford to buy a new armed scout helicopter.Officials of EADS said last week they had successfully demonstrated the capabilities of its proposed aerial scout aircraft, an armed and upgraded version of the Army's UH-72A Lakota.EADS, the European defense and aerospace contractor that owns Eurocopter, would like to convince the Army that it can provide an affordable, all new helicopter to replace the OH-58Ds now in service.The Army has embarked on a $2 billion plan to upgrade the combat capabilities of the Kiowa to an OH-58F version, with new digital flight electronics, sensors and weapons targeting system.But fresh off a decade of experience in the heat and higher altitudes of Afghanistan and Iraq, the Army would like to have a scout helicopter capable of operating as high as 6,000 feet in 95 degree heat, which is outside the OH-58D's capabilities.Bell has proposed adding a new engine, rotor blades, tail rotor and drive system that it says will allow the OH-58 to fly, hover and maneuver with weapons and fuel at the higher altitudes.The prototype aircraft was flown and demonstrated its "hot-and-high" capabilities in Colorado last year.As important as the performance of the aircraft, Hubbard said, is the cost."We had an independent company look at the life cycle cost of our helicopter versus the new (EADS) helicopter. The Block II would save $11 billion over 20 years in life cycle costs," Hubbard said.Army and Pentagon officials are expected to decide before the end of the year to either hold a competition for a new scout helicopter, further upgrade the existing fleet or wait.In addition, AVX Aircraft Co. of Fort Worth has also made proposals to the Army for a massively overhauled OH-58 that would boost its speed, payload and high altitude performance.Bob Cox, 817-390-7723Twitter: @bobcoxictHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
