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Bad news for the troops: According information obtained by Der Spiegel,
the modernization of Bundeswehr’s rescue helicopters is being massively delayed.
Until 2020, only aircraft dating back to the 1960s will be available for emergencies.
The reason for the delay is a dispute between Bell Helicopters and Airbus Helicopters.
Both manufacturers would like to equip the Bundeswehr with a successor for the army’s rescue fleet,
and therefore present themselves before the Federal public procurement chamber.
This has considerable consequences for the troops. According to estimates by the defence ministry’s armaments department,
even if the dispute is resolved at the earliest,
it can be expected that seven new SAR helicopters will be able to be procured by 2020.
The German Armed Forces wanted to retire these vintage helicopters long ago, and replace them with Airbus helicopters.
However, due to errors in the award procedure, which Spiegel reported back in 2015, there were always new delays.
According to internal papers, Secretary of State Katrin Suder is very upset about this new failure.
Even the army, which operates the rescue helicopters of the Bundeswehr, is unhappy.
The delays mean that the old Bell helicopters must now be kept in service for at least two more years.
This is very expensive, as the Bundeswehr had to conclude an extra maintenance contract.
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