“The Bell 429 is ‘ur leiwand'”. At the Bell presentation in Bad Vöslau on September 10, US Ambassador Trevor Traina left no doubt about his Austro-German language skills and his favorite for the successor to the Alouette III fleet (see Militär Aktuell report) of the Austrian Armed Forces.
In addition to the Airbus model H-145M (Interview with program manager Mark Henning), the AW169 from Leonardo (Interview with Leonardo manager Cesare Caccia) and the 429 from Bell have been identified as potential successor candidates. The latter was presented to the media and guests in Bad Vöslau in front of, in and above the facilities of the domestic aviation company Heli-Austria. Against the backdrop of the army’s tight budget situation and the economic and job situation in Austria, which is likely to remain critical due to Covid, all speakers emphasized the cost-effectiveness and the advantages of the 429 over the competition, particularly in terms of life cycle costs. Heli-Austria boss Roy Knaus (Interview with Militär Aktuell) also explained the “outfitting role” that Heli-Austria could play in the event of a contract being concluded.
However, he and Patrick Moulay, Bell Managing Director in Europe, also emphasized that this would primarily depend on the final configuration and equipment planned by the Austrian Armed Forces in the event of a contract being awarded. In view of the presence of two red-painted 429 rescue helicopters from Air Zermatt (Report from our visit to Zermatt) and the Slovakian Air Transport Europe, Militär Aktuell asked about the possible armament options. It was then explained that the Austrian Armed Forces had signaled this as a lower or better later option. The focus would rather be on Austrian value creation and missions such as firefighting, search and rescue missions.
However, when asked, Ambassador Trevor Traina denied that there had already been any direct contact with the cabinet regarding the helicopter. However, there had already been talks regarding the new partnership between the Austrian Armed Forces and the US National Guard announced by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during his visit to Austria in mid-August (Military News reported). According to US Defense Attaché Colonel Mark W. Barlow, eleven US states have already expressed their interest, but the decision as to which state – or which two states (this is also a possibility) – will ultimately be selected will not be made until December. Following the discussion, guests of honor and media representatives were able to enjoy a short sightseeing flight over the Vienna Basin. However, this did not result in a photographically usable formation – despite the best visibility.
Here for more news about the helicopter manufacturer Bell.
