I am just hacked off with the perpetual slagging off of AWH. As a commercial company it is in their interests to keep the customer (which unfortunately in this country isn't the user it's the IPTs) happy. Now if the IPTs order the platform they think they want, and they think they can afford it would be commercially irresponsible to deliver anything else. As hard as it is for the Services to swallow, companies like AWH (or Eurocopter or any other aircraft manufacturer) are in it to make a profit and they are only obliged to be spec and contract compliant, you don't get anything for over achieving.
The pressure should be on the procurement staff to ensure what is actually wanted (and thats a difficult decision to arrive at to start with, how do you get three opinions.... ask 2 pilots) and that that is passed accurately to the suppliers and then explain to the users why whatever decision has been made, recognising that any public procurement is inherently a political decision.
I agree that Lynx 3 would have possible been a better starting point but again budgetry concerns almost certainly came into play, no doubt a Lynx 3 type was evaluated and costed along with other options but the decision makers arrived at what we now have.
GND The comments regarding seats in the Chinook back up my points exactly and highlights the lack of understanding between the operators and the design/certification/approval system, if the Ch47 had to be designed and built to current standards it wouldnt be anywhere near as capable as it is, but that current capability has (now unacceptable from new) penalties. Design cases now ensure that crew and pax are safer but the downside is a smaller payload fraction and seemingly 'less efficent' aircraft, the world has moved on regardless of you personally being happy to accept the lack of crashworthiness (you won't get a new aircraft into service without the current standards applying in any case if QQ are on the ball).
It is this discrepancy between aircraft of different generations that make meaningful comparison impossible, the intangible benefits of current design standards aren't summed up in payload/range/speed terms.
And a final point regarding voting Red in Yeovil, it's been a Lib Dem seat for years! (the chairman of the party was the MP after all) so I dont think the Flynx order is going to change that.
Interesting discussion here though
DM