NH90 in Australia

Australian Aerospace and the Australian Army have begun preparing for delivery of the first two MRH90s at the end of this year. The last of 46 aircraft ordered by the ADF will be delivered in 2011.
Australian Aerospace has probably grown faster than any other defence contractor in Australia - from 45 staff in 2002 to more than 600 in 2007, and as preparations accelerate for assembly of MRH90 multirole helicopters at the company's Brisbane facility that number will only increase.

Notwithstanding the success to date of Air 87, under which 18 of 22 Tiger armed reconnaissance helicopters for the Australian Army are currently being assembled at the same Brisbane facility, it is the MRH90 program that will drive the fortunes of Australian Aerospace - a subsidiary of Eurocopter which in turn is a subsidiary of the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) - into the next decade.

The first four of the 46 MRH90s on order to replace the Army's 35 S-70A-9 Black Hawks and the Royal Australian Navy's six Mk 50 Sea Kings are now being assembled in France and the first two will be delivered to Australia in December.

The second two will arrive from France in the first quarter of 2008, after which Australian assembly will get underway on the line vacated by the last of the Tigers. Tooling is currently being prepared for the MRH90, technical documentation is being readied, and management reviews completed.

Joseph Saporito, Chief Executive Officer of Australian Aerospace, told ADM that between seven and nine aircraft would be assembled, ground tested and flight tested per year, meaning the current order, barring unforeseen difficulties, is likely to be completed late in 2011.

Analysts note this would mean capacity would be available at the right time should AIR 9000 Phase 8 be accelerated and the maritime variant of the MHR90 be selected to replace ageing Sea Hawks aboard Australia's new air warfare destroyers, the first of which is scheduled to commission in 2013.

Although New Zealand has ordered eight NH90s - the European equivalent of the MRH90 - as yet there is no linkage to the Australian program and all the RNZAF aircraft will be manufactured in France.

Saporito disclosed that as yet there had been no rescoping of the strategic partnership that Australian Aerospace signed with the Defence Materiel Organisation in 2005 when it won the its initial order for 12 trooplift helicopters. The order for an additional 34 aircraft followed in June last year.

Saporito said there was no significant difference in assembling the Tiger and the MRH90, although the Tiger was more complex in some respects because of its weapons systems.

Both were largely constructed of composite materials such as Kevlar and carbon laminates and the key challenge in both programs was in recruiting skilled staff that could be trained, generally in France, in the manufacture, assembly and repair of such materials. As with the Tiger, a small team of European experts would provide technical assistance on the MRH90 assembly line.

Highlighting the importance of the materials issue, Australian Aerospace and one of its major French suppliers are investing $15 million in a state-of-the-art composite fibre manufacturing plant in Queensland which late this year will begin producing key fuselage parts and fittings for the Tiger, the MRH90 and the NH90, as well as developing technologies and procedures for maintenance and repairs.

The facility will also act as an operational test site for research and development carried out by the Cooperative Research Centre for Advanced Composite Structures at Fisherman's Bend, Victoria. The Centre's primary aim is to provide a focus for the development of advanced technologies which foster the growth of an efficient, globally-competitive, Australian composite industry.

The Australian Industry Capability development requirements in the $2.6 billion MRH90 contract have not been disclosed, but Saporito said that the program would inject $1.1 billion into Australian industry. This included some 400 new jobs with Australian Aerospace and other companies, about 60 of which would be involved in long-term maintenance of the aircraft.

The most complex sub-contracting role is being undertaken by ADI, which developed the complex software-based ground mission management system for the Tiger and is now doing the same for the MRH90.

Saporito is enthusiastic about export opportunities. Apart from fuselage parts and fittings, he envisages interest in Australian-designed and manufactured ground training devices including an underwater escape trainer, and a local company has been selected to manufacture MRH90 electrical harnesses for both the Australian and European production lines.

The MRH90 being purchased for Australia is similar to the NH90 TTH, the tactical transport helicopter for the German Army which entered service last year. The major differences are radio systems which are specific to Australia, and machinegun fittings at both sliding doors for the Australian aircraft.

Similarly, one of the few variations between the MRH90s operated by Army and the six aircraft that will replace the Royal Australian Navy's Sea Kings are likely to be permanent floats on the Navy platforms.

By Julian Kerr, Sydney