Scott Nicholas
Turkey’s undersecretariat for defense industries has selected five aerospace companies to manufacture and deliver T70 helicopters as part of the estimated $3.5 billion TUHP-Turkish Utility Helicopter Program.
Turkish Aerospace Industries will act as the prime contractor on the program and collaborate with Sikorsky Aircraft as the project’s major subcontractor as well as with local companies Aselsan, TEI and Alp Aviation, TAI said Tuesday.
The team will build 109 T70s for Turkey’s armed and special forces, national police and general directorate of forestry.
TAI noted it will oversee production, final assembly operations, tests and integrated logistics support for airframe structures and composite rotor blades of the country’s future T70 fleet.
TEI will build the helicopters’ engine technology through a license agreement with General Electric.
Sikorsky and Aselsan will jointly develop an integrated modular avionics system while Alp Aviation will produce and assemble landing gears, gearbox and dynamic components.
Dan Schultz was selected to lead Lockheed Martin‘s Sikorsky subsidiary in November as the president of the helicopter manufacturing business.
