‘Progress continues' on NMH procurement despite Lockheed and Airbus dropouts

Contender specifications for the UK's New Medium Helicopter tender, after Lockheed Martin and Airbus dropped out on 30 August 2024. (Janes)

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) told Janes that it is “reviewing a proposal from industry”, after both Airbus Helicopters and Lockheed Martin dropped out of the competition to provide the UK's New Medium Helicopter (NMH).

Airbus Helicopters UK with its H175M and Lockheed Martin UK with its S-70M Blackhawk did not engage with the competition's Invitation to Negotiate (ITN), both pulling out before the deadline of midnight (2300 GMT) on 30 August. This leaves Leonardo, with its AW149, as the only remaining bidder.

The stated requirement from the MoD was for “up to 44” new rotorcraft for GBP1.2 billion (USD1.5 billion), including five years of initial support, with a contract expected in 2025.

However, on 1 May the number of airframes, and the viability of the wider programme itself, came into question with senior industry executives telling lawmakers that the actual requirement could be for as few as 23–30 helicopters.

“We believe that Blackhawk remains the best solution both for the UK armed forces and UK industry and continue to collaborate with [the] UK MoD to support its refresh of the wider UK Rotary Wing Strategy, but have elected not to submit a response to the New Medium Helicopter ITN as we could not meet its minimum requirements in today's market conditions,” a Lockheed Martin spokesperson told Janes.