Originally Posted by
Not_a_boffin
They didn't have the option of keeping the two old ones. They were nigh-on 35 years old and knackered. Not to mention being non-compliant with current regulations.
What Navantia / Spanish government did do was to give them an incentive.
The reason why we needed the spanish one was because we were reffiting the old ones, they were refitted in singapore to bring them up to the new regulations. Later naventia and Hyundai were given the opportunity to tender for the replacements as part of a restricted tender competition.
But this is just bringing the a thread off topic. Wonder if this is going to give the army an option to test drive the a AW149. You dont buy a car without a test drive why would you buy a helicopter with out one