Lockheed Bests AgustaWestland for Danish Maritime Helicopter
Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT) and United Technologies Corp. (UTX)’s Sikorsky have beaten Finmeccanica SpA (FNC)’s AgustaWestland to supply helicopters to the Danish military.
The Danish government has opted for the MH-60R over the AW159 Wildcat, the defense ministry said today in a statement on its website. The nine rotorcraft will be delivered between 2016 and 2018, the ministry said.
The loss is a major setback for AgustaWestland, which was the incumbent on the program. The MH-60Rs will start replacing AgustaWestland Lynx helicopters in Danish operational service in 2017, the ministry said.
An AgustaWestland spokesman said the company had no immediate comment.
Lockheed Martin, based in Bethesda, Maryland, and Sikorsky developed the MH-60R for the U.S. Navy and sold the system to Australia last year. The companies have said Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand are potential buyers. Thailand last year agreed to buy the MH-60S, a sister model.
The MH-60R and AW159 also are competing for a contract in South Korea, with a decision scheduled for next year.
To contact the reporter on this story: Robert Wall in London at rwall6@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Benedikt Kammel at bkammel@bloomberg.net
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