Bell Textron Inc. beat two of the biggest defense contractors in the industry for a U.S. Army contract to manufacture the replacement of the . Securing the contract means billions for the company for decades to come.
Bell was Lockheed Martin鈥檚 Sikorsky and Boeing鈥檚 helicopter. The Army chose Bell鈥檚 tilt-rotor design with the , which will eventually replace the Black Hawk. The Black Hawk has been flying for more than four decades.
The contract could be worth about $70 billion for decades to come, according to reporting The first set of helicopters will be worth $7.1 billion
The contract is part of 鈥� an effort to modernize the Army, under the program.
鈥淲e are honored that the U.S. Army has selected the Bell V-280 Valor as its next-generation assault aircraft,鈥� said Scott C. Donnelly, Textron鈥檚 chairman and chief executive officer. 鈥淲e intend to honor that trust by building a truly remarkable and transformational weapon system to meet the Army鈥檚 mission requirements. We are excited to play an important role in the future of Army Aviation.鈥�
Bell, which is headquartered in Fort Worth, employs more than 4,000 people.
Richard Aboulafia, managing director at , a boutique aerospace and defense consultancy, said this is a huge deal for Bell Textron as its programs, such as and start to wind down.
鈥淭hey wouldn鈥檛 have had much of a future without this,鈥� Aboulafia said. 鈥淭his is going to be the center of what Bell does in the next decade. They鈥檒l still have their civil business, but you know, they鈥檙e a third player after Airbus and Leonardo.鈥�
The new contract is bound to create jobs as time goes on and the helicopter becomes in service starting in 2030, Aboulafia said.
Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker called the contract a historic moment.
鈥淭his historic decision will preserve and expand our world-class workforce here in Texas. This is a historic win for Bell and Team Valor, and a big win for the state of Texas,鈥� Parker wrote in a tweet.
Texas ranks third in the amount of defense contracts 鈥� companies in the state received
.鈥檚 V-280 Valor has been selected by the as the Future Long Range Assault Aircraft! This historic decision will preserve and expand our world-class workforce here in Texas. This is a historic win for Bell and Team Valor, and a big win for the state of Texas.
— Mayor Mattie Parker (@MayorMattie)
There鈥檚 several components that go into choosing a new helicopter. In a past interview with, , a professor of practice in mechanical engineering with expertise in the aerospace industry at University of Texas at Arlington said how far and fast the aircrafts can fly and the reliability and cost effectiveness goes into awarding a contract.
鈥淲e鈥檙e American taxpayers. And the people that derive these requirements, they鈥檙e very sensitive to that, and the military is sensitive to that,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淭hey only have so many dollars, so they have to get as they would say, the best bang for your buck.鈥�
Experts like Aboulafia believe the contract will be formally contested by Sikorsky and Boeing. Doing so is common but seldom successful, and is often used as a way of getting more information about why the company lost the contract and why the other company won.
Sikorsky and Boeing officials remain confident in their product, DEFIANT X, as the best choice.
鈥淲e remain confident DEFIANT X is the transformational aircraft the U.S. Army requires to accomplish its complex missions today and well into the future. We will evaluate our next steps after reviewing feedback from the Army,鈥� according to a joint statement from Sikorsky and Boeing.
It isn鈥檛 a huge loss for Sikorsky or Boeing, Aboulafia said. The Black Hawk will still be in production even with the new helicopter for decades to come. Boeing still has the Apache and Chinook helicopters.
鈥淚t also means that they鈥檙e going to be lobbying, to delay FLRAA to fund Black Hawk procurement on an ongoing basis,鈥� he said. 鈥淚n other words, the FLRAA program now has an enemy.鈥�
Lockheed Martin is the top recipient of defense contracts. In fiscal year 2021, the awarded $39.2 billion in contracts to Lockheed. The company employs more than 22,000 people in the Fort Worth area and has produced aircrafts such as the , at an aeronautics facility according to a Lockheed Martin spokesperson. Sikorsky is headquartered in Stratford, Connecticut.
Bell and Lockheed Martin are also competing for the , which are helicopters designed for scouting and reconnaissance.
is a business and economic development reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at seth.bodine@fortworthreport.org and follow on Twitter at .