"The requirement has been written/amended in close partnership with the UK's Best Helicopter maker."
Ok, a tad simplistic but when the requirement was written, a fiscal limit was placed that err shall we say sort of limited it to a short list of one or two.
The requirements for BLUH and SCMR, and more recently BRH, were not drawn up in collusion with any manufacturer, even the one in the West Country.
We shall not mention the fact that the requirement didn’t go to open tender due to a certain Somerset company stating that the cost of opening it to competition in the normal sense would double the list price. Cornered market would not be an expression I would use but there you go.
The Future Lynx airframe is a new design. You may have noticed that it's a different shape, with new crashworthy structure making use of monolithic machined panels, rather than thousands of rivets.
The tail and nose, maybe. And, most would consider adding a big seat with springs in the bottom not exactly in the same arena as 'cutting edge crash worthy'.
The internal volume is the same, true, which is a restriction if it's needed to carry more than 6 + a DG in the back in crashworthy seats, with kit.
The current version can barely do that. The new version requires that the DG has his own 'space'. To give him his own space, with CW seating for pax, plus basic kit, you would be hard pushed to fit a few burly chaps in. This reduces capability. Any more than 5-6 kitted blokes would require SH to ferry them to a loc.
This is not an 'undermine SHF' episode, more of a 'lets buy a cab that doesn’t require a Merlin to ferry a team of 6+ around'.
BOWMAN is an essential requirement for BRH (as it was for BLUH). IDM is essential as well, to talk to WAH64. If Future Lynx is chosen, then it will have BOWMAN and IDM capability.
Wow, a revolution! Would have been nice for AH but you can’t have everything.
Comms to all is a basic requirement, not a major selling point!
I know its akin to walking into a certain religions house of prayer with a pork pie but....a certain product of a certain US company (I shall use the pseudonym Dark, off white bird of prey, answering to the name of SH60) would fit the bill without stepping on the SH toes. Dare I say, the colonials across the pond seem to use it rather effectively with their antiquated version of the AH.
Current Lynx OSDs are 2012 for the 3, 7 and 9; 2014 for the 8, BTW, not 2010
You say that in an almost smug kind of way. One hopes we don’t have too many more three line whip occasions where the Ginger marching suit, boots crunchy and full medals parades are required for chaps who couldn’t attend the BOI before 2012.
VP, I take it you work across the road from the NAAFI at EGVP, failing that, a couple of miles West of a certain Wiltshire Cathedral city? I know you have a busy time ahead but a bit of 'out the box' bollox would be nice! Not all the staff will get an executive position at Yeovil you know.