Boeing to bid on presidential helicopter fleet contract

Today Boeing will announce that they will throw their hat in the ring for the revived controversial presidential helicopter replacement program.  The first program had been thoroughly criticized by President Obama as a prime example of wasteful military spending and poor management, with the cost having doubled from $6 billion to around $13 billion.  In this new go-around, the Pentagon hopes to keep the price for 28 new helicopters firmly around $6-10 billion.  Boeing's plan is to purchase the rights to produce a version of the AW101 (a midsize helicopter) from AgustaWestland, a European company that had partnered with Lockheed Martin for the original contract.  Lockheed will actually reenter the contest again, although this time they will team up with Sikorsky and offer a helicopter based on Sikorsky's H-92 medium-lift aircraft.  Boeing will have a slight advantage since the AW101 had been chosen as the ideal platform during the original program, since it is larger than the Sikorsky craft and can carry more passengers with fewer modifications.  The new rotorcraft are not expected to be ferrying presidents and his/her aides before 2017.  They are also expected to have extra protective measures from terrorist threats, including chemical, biological, and nuclear attacks,

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