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Article: US helo builders look for lift: the four major players are facing difficult times, particularly V-22 Osprey partners Bell and Boeing. (Industry report: civil helicopter markets).(Statistical Data Included)
- Article from:
- Interavia Business & Technology
- Article date:
- January 1, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Aerospace Media Publishing. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Consolidation of the US helicopter industry, long predicted by the analysts, never happened. As a result, economic contraction has made life difficult for all four builders of multi-passenger turbine-engine helicopters. The woes of the V-22 Osprey programme, however, have directly hit Bell and Boeing.
This year, Bell and Boeing expected to start cashing Pentagon cheques for full-rate production of the Osprey. Not only is it a very expensive rotorcraft, but much of its cost and complexity resides in the airframe and dynamic systems, so most of the revenue stays with Bell and Boeing rather than being passed to subcontractors. Production contracts include not only a ...