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#11
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"Helowriter" wrote in news:1111155479.986630.189070
@l41g2000cwc.googlegroups.com: The Merlin in the UK was delivered five years late and 1.6 billion pounds over budget, and Lockheed Martin was the systems integrator. If we're to believe recent news, the F-22 and JSF are way, way, way over budget with no end in sight. Oh, the phrase "cost overrun" was actually coined for a Lockheed program -- the C-5 Galaxy. Comanche. |
#12
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HW Thank you for the correction. I should have said "Asia" builds the
S-92 commercial fuselage. But remenber Sikorsky proclaimed themselves to be the "All American Team". They are only all American however when it suits their bottom line. If they cared so much for the welfare of the American aerospace work force, they would have kept the commercial S-92 work in the US also. For the on going Army ARH RFP, Sikorsky was originally proposing a modification of a foreign made helicopter. Again, bottom line. CTR |
#13
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CTR wrote:
HW Thank you for the correction. I should have said "Asia" builds the S-92 commercial fuselage. But remenber Sikorsky proclaimed themselves to be the "All American Team". They are only all American however when it suits their bottom line. If they cared so much for the welfare of the American aerospace work force, they would have kept the commercial S-92 work in the US also. For the on going Army ARH RFP, Sikorsky was originally proposing a modification of a foreign made helicopter. Again, bottom line. CTR When and where did they proclaim to be an "All American Team"? They haven't done anything that most if not all other aerospace manufacturers have done around the world..Outsource to defray and reduce costs. They probably weren't the first and they are definitely not the only company.... and..what "foreign made" helicopter were you referring to...just curious?. ...and none of these companies are charities..they all care about the bottom line... ~R |
#14
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The All-American Team was important because the Government had long
insisted Presidential helo work be done in a secure manufacturing environment crewed only by US citizens. VXX is also the helicopter for the President of the United States, and that has some symbolic value. All that, and concerns about crashworthiness and operating costs, went out the window as payback to Berlusconi and Blair for their support in OIF. Don't take too much comfort in how Lockheed Martin values the American aerospace worker -- they just won the Army Airborne Common Sensor program with a Brazilian platform. The LM idea seems to be the platform doesn't matter - it's the software that counts. Until, of course, the Presidential platform flattens like a Merlin. Oh, when the Comanche was cancelled, the undersecretary of the Army admitted everyone on the contractor side had done just what had been asked of them. The Army could never get its act, and its requirements together. As to Agusta Westland -- WG30. HW HW |
#15
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On the back cover of the Winter 2004 Vertiflite issue is a full page
Sikorsky ad proclaiming "The All-American Sikorsky S-92...." Again, it's Sikorsky's hypocricy that has the foul odor, not their product. The ARH is to be awarded this June. Ask me again then. Have fun, CTR |
#16
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On the back cover of the Winter 2004 Vertiflite issue is a full page
Sikorsky ad proclaiming "The All-American Sikorsky S-92...." Again, it's Sikorsky's hypocricy that has the foul odor, not their product. The ARH is to be awarded this June. Ask me again then. Have fun, CTR |
#17
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CTR wrote: On the back cover of the Winter 2004 Vertiflite issue is a full page Sikorsky ad proclaiming "The All-American Sikorsky S-92...." Again, it's Sikorsky's hypocricy that has the foul odor, not their product. The ARH is to be awarded this June. Ask me again then. Have fun, CTR ...call it hipocricy if you want....the foul odor smells like sour grapes to me...disgruntled former employee maybe?...I see nothing wrong with the ad...it is All American...all the risks were taken here in the states...design, testing...flight testing...anything and everything up to production launch....we might as well rip up the Chevy truck commercials...I guarantee you there's quite a few foreign made parts under the hood..and thats got All American written all over it...I don't think there is a major corp. in the world that hasn't leveraged marketing in it's best interests... ..........still wondering what the "foreign made Helicopter" was ....interesting comment.. |
#18
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Nope, never worked for Igor's company. Have admired their products
however. Worked in Aerospace for 25 years for most major airframers, never layed off or fired. Still even exchange Christmas cards with all my old bosses. The strength of Americas aerospace industry is in its workers. Not the CEOs. All the risks? Certainly not financial. Both Japan and China bought into their contracts. I am not saying Lockheed or the US101 is any better than Sikorsky or the S-92. But people need to wake up and realize that the day any aerospace CEO honestly cares about American jobs and technology is over. I really wish I could have met some of the men fifty years ago who did care like Larry Bell, Igor Sikorsky and John McDonnell. By the way, I attended a conference two years ago where Curt Weldon spoke concerning the Commanche. He said that if Sikorsky and Boeing didn't straighten up their act, there was nothing he could do to keep them from being canceled. Have fun, CTR |
#19
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Oh Good Grief, I've sat through enough Curt Weldon speeches to know he
doesn't understand a lot of what he talks about. Comanche was cancelled because the Army changed its mind. The Army validated a Cold War requirement for more than 10 years after the Cold War, then dropped it to fund immediate Aviation needs in OIF. Boeing and Sikorsky gave them what they asked for. The strength of American aerospace is in its workers -- not just the Union guys on assembly lines, but the engineers, program managers, test technicians, etc. That's why you don't want the design authority on helicopters to reside offshore. Bell seems happy to be the LM build-to-print shop for European helicopters. LM recommended the AB139 to replace the Jayhawk in the Coast Guard, and they'll pitch the US101 for the Air Force rescue requirement and other contracts. That gives you assembly jobs in Texas and software jobs in New York, but it leaves the core engineering work off-shore. That hurts US competitiveness. Sikorsky made safety innovations in the H-92 way beyond what was available when the EH101 was designed. It brought in international partners to reduce the cost of the project and to get footholds in a perceived market. The core engineering stayed in the US, and that's what we need to be competitive. HW |
#20
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HW, what Curt Weldon realized years ago is that the Commanche had
become a "Work-Fare" program for Boeing and Sikorsky. After 13 years all the Army had to show for it's investment was two overweight underpowered prototypes and a proposal for a block stage improvement program. Six years ago when I was visiting Boeing in Philly, over drinks some engineers confided in me that they never expected the Commanche to go into production. They felt the program had become means to develop technology (avionics, FBW controls, composites) for future viable programs. The fact that the program went on as long as it did surprised even them. "The strength of American aerospace is in its workers -- not just the Union guys on assembly lines, but the engineers, program managers, test technicians, etc. That's why you don't want the design authority on helicopters to reside offshore." I agree with you fully. But in the case of the US101 and VH92, both aircraft are already supposedly developed. All that is left is is stuffing with the special avionics, EMI protection, counter measures, etc. And this work was to remain in the US no matter who won. Is the S-92 an excellent product? Yes. Was it smart to bring in Japan as an international partner? Yes. China? Time well tell. |
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