UK company sole bidder for £1bn MOD helicopter project

Leonardo has been left as sole bidder for a major defence contract

Yeovil-based helicopter manufacturer Leonardo has been left as the sole bidder for a major defence contract worth up to £1bn.

It comes after both Airbus and Lockheed Martin withdrew from the tendering process to construct a new medium helicopter (NMH) for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) last month.

Leonardo said if it wins the contract, it would create skilled jobs at its headquarters in Yeovil.

The firm's managing director told the BBC he hopes the contract award for Leonardo's AW149 helicopter can now be accelerated.

Adam Clarke, the managing director of Leonardo Helicopters UK told the BBC it has a "fantastic helicopter in the AW149" and "amazing facilities" in Yeovil, as well as "great people and skills".

"The Leonardo offering brings all that together to deliver a 149 helicopter, built in the UK," he added.

Asked if he is concerned the government may yet scrap the NMH programme, Mr Clarke said: "The requirement's there, the operational need is there, and we're ready to deliver on that.

"We can save time, we can save costs and get this contract to award much quicker than planned."

Mr Clarke added the project could contribute more than 12,000 jobs to the UK supply chain, including 1,500 skilled jobs, some of which would be based in Yeovil.

Airbus has pulled out of the tendering process for the new helicopter

A spokesperson for Airbus said: "Together with our partners we have concluded that we are unable to formulate a responsible bid that would in parallel satisfy the customer’s requirements and provide adequate long-term returns to the business while implying a reasonable prospect of winning."

The company says it believes its H175M helicopter remains the right aircraft for the UK.

Lockheed Martin said: "We believe that Black Hawk remains the best solution both for the UK armed forces and UK industry and continue to collaborate with UK MoD to support its refresh of the wider UK Rotary Wing Strategy, but have elected not to submit a response to the New Medium Helicopter ITN [invitation to negotiate] as we could not meet its minimum requirements in today’s market conditions."

A spokesperson for the MoD said: "The New Medium Helicopter programme is an important initiative to acquire a modern medium-lift support helicopter. 

"Progress is continuing and we will be reviewing a proposal from industry."