Helo to new contract

Volume 49, No. 12, July 13, 2006

The contract signing for an additional 34 MRH 90 helicopters marked the culmination of a high-tempo project the Head of the Aerospace Systems Division AVM Clive Rossiter has said.

AVM Rossiter was addressing the contract signing ceremony for Phases 4 and 6 of the Project Air 9000 program in Canberra on June 30.

The contract provides for the addition of the 34 to the previous 12 ordered under Phase 2. The additional helicopters will serve as replacements for the Sea King and Black Hawk helicopters as part of the rationalisation of the ADF helicopter fleet.

“It has been a very high-tempo project,” AVM Rossiter said.

“Twelve months ago we signed Phase 2. Twelve months later, we are here signing for a more significant acquisition contract.

“We received an unsolicited bid on February 10. We put that through the Defence Capability Investment Committee on March 21, then through the National Security Committee of Cabinet in May.

“There was an announcement on June 19 by Prime Minister John Howard and Defence Minister Dr Brendan Nelson and negotiations were finalised after that, culminating in the signing today.”

Effectively, the past five months had been an incredible achievement by many people because projects were tough and demanding, AVM Rossiter said.

“It is one of the things I like about projects, that because they are demanding they require a number of people to step up to the mark.”

Among them, AVM Rossiter paid tribute to the inspired energy and leadership of BRIG Mark Patch, the MRH 90 Director-General.

“I very much doubt that we would be here today on this day as opposed to another day in the distant future if it had not been for Mark’s tireless energy, pushing, pulling and cajoling. . . to get the job done,” AVM Rossiter said.

The new contract also established a much more robust support system and a long-term support contract that provided for 13 years of support under an innovative performance-based contracting arrangement, AVM Rossiter said.

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