CANBERRA, Australia, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- The Australian Defense Department appears likely to scrap a problem-plagued helicopter deal with a U.S. manufacturer.
The Australian reported Saturday a number of the refurbished Seasprite helicopters from manufacturer Kaman Aerospace Corp. were grounded last year by the navy over concerns about airworthiness and flight control systems. And the acquisition project, signed in 1997, is already six-years behind schedule because of software glitches and other problems.
The Seasprite is a twin-engine aircraft from the Vietnam War era. Refurbished models are equipped with anti-ship missiles and modern avionics.
According to a report in the Saturday edition of The Australian, the Defense Department has already recommended that the Australian contractor dealing with Kaman cancel the contract. A formal government decision to back off the idea of a Seasprite squadron in favor of another helicopter for navy use could be made by the Cabinet's national security committee as early as next week.
Mentioned as a possible replacement helicopter is the U.S.-made Seahawk, which is already in service with the Australian navy.
