US Approves Sale of Up to $8.5 Billion in Helicopters to Germany
- Decision will be welcome news for Boeing plant in Philadelphia
- Army has been looking to scale back its own Chinook purchases
A CH-47 Chinook helicopter.
Photographer: Roni Rekomaa/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The US State Department has approved the potential sale of as much as $8.5 billion in CH-47 Chinook helicopters, engines and equipment to Germany, which if it proceeds could provide relief to Boeing Co. as the Army presses ahead with plans to shift its spending to other helicopter programs.
Germany wants to buy 60 of the CH-47F Block II cargo helicopters, as well as 140 of the T55-GA-714A engines produced by Honeywell International Inc. — 120 installed in the aircraft and 20 spares, the State Department said in a statement. That would bolster Germany’s heavy-lift capability and enable the US ally “to strengthen its homeland defense and deter regional threats.”