More than a year after a stern warning to Textron Inc's Bell Helicopter unit to speed up production on an $8 billion contract to upgrade the Marine Corps's H-1 helicopters, the Navy says it is still "not happy" with the program.
"I'm not happy with what I see at H-1," the Navy's top weapons buyer, Delores Etter, said in an interview. "In the end, it doesn't matter, all the talk; we've got to see changes in production."
Etter said she plans to visit the company's production plant in Amarillo, Texas, again in September and is in regular contact with Bell Chief Executive Richard Millman, but improvements in production have been slower than hoped.
Etter said the Navy is keeping all options open on the future of the program but said she still believes the best plan is to work with Bell to accelerate production of quality helicopters for the Marine Corps.
"We've got to get that production facility working so that it's able to get us quality helicopters on a schedule," she said. "We've got to get this one back on track. We're not there yet."
Bell spokesman Mike Cox said the company was working to resolve the Navy's concerns: "We understand the seriousness of our customer's concerns and are working hard to resolve them."
The Pentagon agreed in June 2006 to let Bell keep its Huey upgrade contract after concluding that it took steps to better manage the troubled program, which has been restructured four times in recent years. But Etter's comments indicate that the Navy is growing frustrated with the pace of change at the company.
Bell has been building H-1 helicopters for the Marine Corps since the 1950s. US lawmakers have criticised the company for continued cost overruns and schedule delays on the program for new light utility or UH-1 Huey helicopters, and attack helicopters also known as AH-1 Cobra.
Bell's problems run deeper than just the H-1 program. In May, the Army agreed to let the company continue working on the $5.4 billion Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) program, despite a jump in costs to $10 million per aircraft from an original estimate of $5.2 million.
Defence analysts say the US military has little choice but to let Bell keep working on these big helicopter programs, given the urgent need for new equipment for troops in Iraq. Dumping Bell and moving to another supplier would be costly and could result in even more delays, they say.
Etter said Bell's problems with its existing helicopter programs make it even more important to ensure the company is closely involved in discussions and decisions about the VH-71 presidential helicopter, being built by a team led by Lockheed Martin Corp, that includes Bell.
Under that contract, four test aircraft and five pilot production helicopters will be built by AgustaWestlandBell, a joint venture of Bell and AgustaWestland, a unit of Italy's Finmeccanica, for delivery through 2009.
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