Originally Posted by
la grua
Suprised that production tooling and parts specific for a H-model would still be sourceable.
If by "production tooling" you mean the fixtures and jigs, those can be (and are) fabricated locally. Know of a number of certified UH-1 airframe and tailboom fixtures in use today. As to the parts supply there is a good network of providers, considering there are still over 175 UH-1 model aircraft still on the US registry alone. Plus the fact there are a number of parts common to the Bell 204/205/212 model line as well. Any other one-off parts could be easily produced per the Bell licensed drawings.
On the civilian side, what will be interesting is if they expand the Ukraine/U.S. aviation bilateral agreement to include these aircraft and parts. Otherwise if they produce enough of these new versions you may see a Bell/Agusta issue if the Ukraine parts start making their way into the mainstream market.