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THE
Philippine Air Force (PAF), armed with an initial
capital outlay of P5 billion, has opened its doors to
bidders to replace its aging fleets of helicopters,
light trainers and troop-and-cargo carriers.
The
aircraft that need replacement are the UH-1H “Huey”
helicopters, the MG-520 ground-attack helicopters, the
SF-260 single-engine trainer, the 11-seater, twin-engine
N-22 “Nomad,” and the OV-10 “Bronco” armed observation
plane.
Lt. Gen.
Horacio Tolentino, Air Force commander, revealed over
the weekend that a four-man mission had been sent to
China for the prequalification process, to find out from
China Aviation Technologies Inc. its offer to replace
the UH-1H and the N-22. He said that at the moment, the
Chinese are ready to provide two helicopters and two
Nomad-type airplanes as initial replacements before the
end of this year.
He said
that the administration had given the Air Force an
initial P5- billion outlay from the Capability Upgrade
Program (CUP) to fund aircraft purchases since the
15-year Armed Forces Modernization Program had been set
aside temporarily.
He said
that following an open bidding, China made an offer to
replace the UH-1H with the Z-9, the Chinese version of
the UH-1H helicopter, and another offer to replace the
Nomad with a similar airplane named Y-12V.
Tolentino said that the four-man mission is headed by
Maj. Gen. Pedro Encierto, Air Force vice commander, and
a representative each from the 220th Airlift Wing and
205th Tactical Helicopter Wing, and another officer, a
remnant of the modernization program.
Tolentino said that since the Air Force is already
operating Bell helicopters, he expects that its
manufacturer, McDonnel Douglas, would also participate
in the bidding. Other bidders included Agusta Westland,
an Italian company, and a Polish helicopter
manufacturer.
The Air
Force has set aside P1.2 billion from the P5-billion CUP
to purchase two light-attack helicopters with
night-flying capability to replace the Vietnam
War-vintage UH-1H and another P600 million for the
purchase of a Nomad replacement.
There
was a lone bidder for the SF-260 trainer plane. The
MG-520 would be upgraded to MG-530 category, with
improved payload and engine performance.
The PAF
was only tasked to provide technical advice and has
nothing to do in deciding what kind of aircraft to
purchase, since this is the prerogative of the
Department of National Defense, Tolentino said.
He added
that the price of an aircraft could be a big factor in
choosing one aircraft manufacturer over another, saying
that it is common knowledge that China could offer
cheaper aircraft.
He
refused to say if China-made aircraft are inferior,
saying that since China and other countries are using
Chinese-made aircraft, it means that the country
manufactures aircraft according to standards.
However,
Tolentino added that the Air Force could also give
postqualification recommendation to members of the
bidding committee if it finds out that some purchases
did not meet some specifications so that the
manufacturer could make the necessary corrections or
improvements.
The
light-utility helicopter being offered by China to
replace the UH-1H was originally made by
France
under the name Dauphin. When France gave China licensing
agreement to manufacture the helicopter, the Chinese
replaced the engine with one of their own brand.
Tolentino said that
China
is offering to sell their Z-9 with the original French
engine “Ariel” if the Philippines does not want a
Chinese-made engine.
At the
moment, the PAF has 24 Nomads, 18 OV-10 “Bronco,” 12
MG-520 attack helicopters, four C-130 “Hercules”
transports and three squadrons of UH-1H helicopters.
“The Air
Force needs of 36 MG-520s and McDonnel is offering the
MG-530 which could carry 500 pounds of payload more than
its predecessor, the MG-520,” Tolentino said. |
