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 The Ankara-based Tusas Turkish Aerospace Industries Inc. (TAI) has submitted to the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries
(SSM) best and final offers of five contenders in Turkey's $4 billion program for the co-production of 145 attack helicopters, the company has announced.
In a statement, TAI said that the attack helicopter program bid had been sent to the SSM for assessment in 135 boxes and 700 folders.
TAI, the prime local contractor for the program, has developed separate bids with each of the contenders.
Under the program timetable, the SSM must complete its assessment of the bids within three months and submit its decision to the country's highest decision-maker in defense procurement, the Defense Industry Executive Committee.
There are five international teams bidding to co-produce 145 helicopter gunships
for Turkey: Eurocopter S.A., Paris, with the UHU-HAS Tiger; Agusta SpA, Cascina Costa, Italy, with the A-129 International; a partnership of Moscow-based Kamov Helicopter Co. and Israel Aircraft Industries,
Lod, Israel, offering the Ka-50/2 Black Shark; Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., Forth Worth, Texas, maker of the AH-1W Super Cobra and its upgraded version, the King Cobra; and Boeing, Seattle, with the AH-64D Apache Longbow.
The choice of anti-tank missile to equip the planned attack helicopter fleet is emerging as the vital element in the competition, defense analysts here said.
They said the hotly contested helicopter contract will be won or lost on the strength of the missile subcontractor. The missile contract, as part of the main deal, is estimated to be worth around $500 million.
Turkey's changing focus has intensified the rivalry between key contenders for the missile program: the United States' Hellfire Systems and Israel's Rafael Armament Development Authority.
"The entire focus of the rivalry to win the attack helicopter program has now shifted to the missile deal, forcing the U.S. and Israeli contenders to increase efforts to promote their systems," said one Turkish procurement official. "The real competition is not between different platforms but between different pairs of platforms and missile systems."
Hellfire Systems' Hellfire II anti-tank missile is offered on each of the competing platforms with the exception of the Black Shark. Rafael's NT-D missile system is offered with Black Shark, and as an alternative to equip the A-129 International.
"This is a rather complicated program with different prime contractors for the platforms and the missile systems," said one official. "For example, A-129 International plus NT-D missiles is one package of offers competing against an A-129 International plus Hellfire II missile package."
(Turkish Daily News)
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