Progress for planned RAF Chinook buy

 

 

A report by Bloomberg News on October 22, quoting an interview with US Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, said that Boeing is close to selling 14 Chinook helicopters to the UK. McCarthy said he had met with his UK counterpart a few weeks earlier and that they are now working out pricing details. He anticipates that signature of a letter of offer and acceptance could be completed next spring, paving the way for a contract.

 

A pair of RAF Chinook HC4s taxi onto the runway to depart RAF Fairford, Gloucestershire. The aircraft had taken part in the 2017 edition of the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) the weekend prior. Khalem Chapman

The RAF has 60 Chinooks (eight HC5, 14 HC6 and 38 HC6A), but has been planning for some years to acquire additional examples to eventually replace the oldest airframes, some of which are nearly 40 years old. The US Defense Security Co-operation Agency announced on October 19, 2018, that State Department approval for the sale of 16 H-47 (Extended Range) helicopters had been granted (see US approves possible Chinook sale to RAF, December 2018, p9).

The latest report reveals that this number has been cut to 14. The Chinooks for the RAF will be in a special forces configuration similar to that of the US Special Operations Command MH-47G Block II variant. On June 13 this year, Boeing was awarded a contract by US Special Operations Command which included US$10m in Foreign Military Spending funding for acquisition of long-lead components and parts in support of planned UK Chinook acquisition.

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