"New Apache attack helicopters bought by the British Army will
have to be mothballed for up to four years because pilots cannot
be trained in time to fly them.
The National Audit Office (NAO) warns that the delay in the use
of the aircraft worth £3 billion could lead to a "significant
capability gap" for the Army because the missile system on its
ageing Lynx helicopter fleet cannot be upgraded.
The NAO criticised several aspects of the deal to buy the 67
Apache helicopters from Westland in 1995, including a decision
to award the training contract to a separate company and a lack
of vision about adapting the US helicopters to British standards.
The government awarded the training contract to ATIL, a
company jointly owned by Westland and Apache's US
manufacturer Boeing, after deeming Westland's sole offer too
expensive.
But ATIL has suffered a series of mishaps, including technical
hitches with a flight training simulator that delayed its delivery by
17 months.
Also, the duration of the training courses has been extended
from 15 weeks to 26 weeks, partly because the helicopter is
now more sophisticated than first envisaged and partly because
the original programme failed to take into account that many
more flying days are likely to be lost to poor weather in Britain.
Of the helicopters already delivered, 25 have been stored in
hangars. Initial pilot training, originally scheduled for 2001, will
not start until September 2003 because of the lack of a flight
training simulator.
The delivery of a fully equipped regiment of 16 of the helicopters
is on track for February 2005, but another training programme for
144 pilots has been put back from April 2004 to February 2007.
The NAO says between 2002 and 2006 a "large number" of
Apaches, possibly more than half, will have to be stored in
hangars at a base in Shropshire at a cost of £6 million.
The watchdog also says the first Apache crews will have no
secure radio communications with British ground troops or other
helicopters because of delays with the Army's Bowman radio
system - but they will be able to speak to US forces."
The Guardian.