Allies Absent in Afghanistan - Helicopters Hired
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British commander foresaw own death; Major deal for US State Department; credit-worthy Czechs; drop gone wrong; contracts to Evergreen, CHC, and Presidential Airways. (March 9/10)
Afghanistan is shaping up as a test of the NATO alliance. Thus far, the report is mixed. While a number of allied countries have committed troops, very few of the NATO countries’ available helicopters have been committed, despite promises made and commanders’ requests from the field. At the moment, Britain, the Netherlands, and the USA still contribute most of the combat helicopter support in theater, alongside some CH-47s from non-NATO partner Australia. They are supplemented by helicopters from some east bloc countries like Poland and the Czech Republic (Mi-8/17s), and the very recent addition of a few CH-47D Chinooks and Bell 412ERs from Canada. The sizable helicopter fleets belonging to NATO members like France, Germany, Italy, and Spain have seen some use in Afghanistan, but the bulk of their use has been in areas away from the serious fighting in the south.
That is creating political tensions within the alliance, especially when set against the backdrop of European shortfalls in meeting NATO ISAF commitments. At one point, the USA was forced to extend the deployment of 20 CH-47 helicopters by 6 months, in order to try and make up the shortfall. Over the longer, term, however, a 2-track solution has emerged. Track one involves keeping up the pressure, and some members of NATO have responded. Track 2 has involved stanching the wound by chartering private helicopter support that can take care of more routine missions in theater, freeing the military helicopters for other tasks.
- Contracts and Key Events [updated]
- Additional Readings
Contracts and Key Events
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March 8/10: Blackwater/ Xe affiliate Presidential Airways, Inc. in Camden, NC receives a $39.1 million task order for rotary wing aircraft, personnel, equipment, tools, material, maintenance, and supervision necessary to perform passenger and cargo air transportation services in Afghanistan. The task order will run from March 5/10 – Nov 30/10. This contract was a competitive acquisition by U.S. Transportation Command at Scott Air Force Base, IL (HTC711-09-D-0021).
The company operates a varied helicopter fleet that includes S-61s, Bell 412/212 twin-Hueys, AS330J Pumas, and light MD530s. The Pumas are most frequently seen as contracted VERTical REPlenishment (VERTREP) support aboard American supply vessels. Presidential Airways has also done a fair bit of helicopter support work for the US State Department; the helicopter that spirited Rep. Alan Grayson [D-FL] out of Niger during the 2010 coup, for instance, was a Presidential Airways bird.
March 8/10: A $20.5 million task order for rotary wing aircraft, personnel, equipment, tools, material, maintenance, and supervision necessary to perform passenger and cargo air transportation services in Afghanistan. The task order will run from March 5/10 – Nov 30/10. This contract was a competitive acquisition by U.S. Transportation Command at Scott Air Force Base, IL (HTC711-09-D-0022).
Like the previous Dec 19/08 contract, it is formally issued to Canadian Commercial Corp., an arm of the Canadian government; but the service provider remains Canadian Helicopters, Ltd. (CHC) in Toronto, Canada. That previous contract covered 3 fully crewed and maintained Bell 212 “Twin Huey” helicopters, essentially civilian versions of the USMC’s UH-1Ns.
Canadian Helicopters, Ltd. is a firm that provides helicopter services for use in oil & gas, mining and forestry, emergency medical services, police support, and other tasks that include support for the Canadian Forces’ North Warning System. These industries and roles require flight into and through remote areas, while contending with difficult weather and terrain in order to get the job done. To that end, Canadian Helicopters operates a diverse fleet of Bell Textron, Eurocopter, and Sikorsky platforms. They also operate the Canadian Helicopters School of Advanced Flight Training, which trains elite military and police pilots as part of their customer base. According to the firm, the Commander of the US Navy Helicopter Special Warfare Squadron describes this training as “best in the world”.
March 8/10: Evergreen Helicopters, Inc. in McMinnville, OR receives a $20.1 million task order modification for rotary wing aircraft, personnel, equipment, tools, material, maintenance, and supervision necessary to perform passenger and cargo air transportation services in Afghanistan. The task order will run from March 5/10 – Nov 30/10. This contract was a competitive acquisition by U.S. Transportation Command at Scott Air Force Base, IL(HTC711-09-D-0023).
Evergreen International Aviation is also under contract to US TRANSCOM for larger cargo charters, and won a 2007 contract to provide helicopter MEDEVAC services for the US Army in Hawaii, using its Bell 412EPs. Its helicopter fleet is very diverse, from S-61 civilian Sea King and AS330 Puma medium helicopters to utility models like the Bell 412EP and even light helicopters like the AS350 or MD500D/E.
March 5/10: There are other ways to help alleviate to the Afghan helicopter shortage. An American general praises the Czech Republic for its work donating 12 helicopters (6 Mi-17s, 6 Mi-24 gunships) to the Afghans, and helping the Afghan NAAC maintain and fly its 25 Mi-17 and 9 Mi-24 helicopters. The Czech Republic is also heading up a NATO initiative aimed to enhance the use of Mi helicopters for the Alliance’s combat operations abroad, and has sent 3 more upgraded Mi-171S helicopters that operate in Paktika province. Prague Daily Monitor; see also Feb 9/08 entry.
March 3/10: Stockholm News reports that non-NATO member Sweden submits budget documents that propose:
”...solutions for helicopters so that the Armed Forces from 2013 will be able to use helicopter capacity abroad, something that has been missing during the current ISAF deployment in Afghanistan.”
Feb 22/10: Sikorsky announces that the US State Department has entered into an indefinite delivery/ indefinite quantity agreement to purchase up to 110 modernized S-61T Sea King helicopters, for “passenger and cargo transport missions in support of its worldwide operations.” The S-61T is a joint development with visionary S-61 operator Carson Helicopters, Inc., and Sikorsky’s release adds that:
“Providing an alternative to the Pentagon’s current purchase and use of Russian helicopters, Sikorsky’s American-made modernized S-61 aircraft is mission-ready now for deployment to Afghanistan and the surrounding regions.”
Read “New S-61T Helos for the Us State Department” for in-depth coverage, and ongoing updates.
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Nov 12/09: Russian firms, and state bodies like the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSVTS), are reportedly offering to sell civilian Mi-8 and Mi-17 helicopters on a commercial basis to NATO, in support of ISAF operations in Afghanistan. Eurasia Daily Monitor.
Oct 31/09: The Daily Mail reports:
“The most senior soldier to be killed in Afghanistan foreshadowed his own death in a damning memo about the shortage of helicopters. Lieutenant Colonel Rupert Thorneloe told his superiors that British troops would die because they were being forced to make trips by road. Less than a month later, he was blown up by a roadside bomb. In his final despatches to commanders in London, classified ‘Nato Secret’, he had dismissed helicopter operations in Afghanistan as ‘not fit for purpose’.”
The issues of adequate blast-resistant vehicles and available helicopters are 2 sides of the same coin, in any environment that features a lot of land mines. On a related note, one might also ask if there’s enough combat engineering.
April 5/09: The USA won a pledge from allies during the recent NATO summit, to send as many as 5,000 more troops to help in Afghanistan. As the Miami Herald reports, however:
‘’It was unclear, however, exactly how much Obama won at the gathering of the 28-member North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Some of the troops included in the announcement already had been committed before the summit.”
There is some question regarding how many of these pledged forces will be front-line combat troops, and there was no public mention of more helicopters, either from European militaries or via financed lease. See: CS Monitor | Miami Herald | Washington Post | Britain’s Times Online | The Guardian of London | The Scotsman | Bulgaria’s Novinite | Agence France Presse | Chinese government’s Xinhua | Times op-ed “It is time all Nato countries did their bit.”
Apr 3/09: Evergreen Helicopters, Inc., of McMinnville, OR received a $158.4 million indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract for helicopters, personnel, equipment, tools, material, maintenance and supervision necessary to perform passenger and cargo air transportation services in Afghanistan. Work is expected to start April 3/09, and run until Nov 30/13. This contract was a competitive acquisition, with 4 offers received by United States Transportation Command’s (USTRANSCOM) Directorate of Acquisition at Scott Air Force Base, IL (HTC711-09-D-0023).
Feb 8/09: The Afghan National Army Air Corps takes delivery of the last 3 of 12 helicopters donated by the Czech Republic: 6 Mi-17 utility helicopters, and 6 Mi-24 attack helicopters. NATO release.
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Dec 19/08: Canadian Helicopter in Ottawa, Canada won a $31.4 million indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract for helicopters to perform passenger and cargo air transportation services in that country. The order is contracted through the Canadian government’s Canadian Commercial Corp., and includes all of the helicopters, associated personnel, equipment, tools, and maintenance involved.
Canadian Helicopters’ release [PDF] says that the contract covers 3 fully crewed and maintained Bell 212 “Twin Huey” helicopters, essentially civilian versions of the USMC’s and USAF’s UH-1Ns. Revenue to the Fund is expected to be in excess of US$ 120 million over 5 years, assuming all option periods are exercised and expected hours are flown. That is far, far more than simply buying and crewing equivalent UH-1Y helicopters would cost – but the contract includes full operations in Afghanistan, as well as risk premiums that would be covered by insurance in other situations.
Work began on Dec 19/08, and the contract runs until Nov 30/13, but contract funds will expire at the end of the Pentagon’s current fiscal year on Sept 30/08. This contract was a competitive acquisition, with 4 bids received by the United States Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) Directorate of Acquisition at Scott Air Force Base, IL (HTC711-09-D-0022).
April 17/08: A contracted cargo drop that included food, water, and RPG-7 anti-armor rockets goes awry. ISAF’s statement said that:
“On March 25, a private helicopter company was contracted, on behalf of an ISAF unit, to resupply an Afghan National Police (ANP) outpost located in a remote mountain area” of Zabul province… Unfortunately, due to a human error in transcribing the latitude and longitude of the location, the load was dropped in another remote area…. forces sent aircraft for a visual reconnaissance, however, the missing cargo could not be found.”
Nov 25/07: An Aviation Week report underlines the seriousness of ISAF’s helicopter issues:
“The helicopter shortage is the “single biggest operational problem” that is hampering the day-to-day operations of ISAF…. “We’re beseeching, begging, doing everything we can to convince nations to contribute more rotary-wing aviation assets, both transport helicopters and attack helicopters,” a Canadian NATO official says.
“It’s not that NATO nations don’t have helicopters. The problem is that they’re very expensive to ship to Afghanistan and to operate and maintain them there. I think there are several nations that prefer to keep their helicopters at home for this reason.”
Oct 25/07: US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates makes a speech at the Conference of European Armies. an excerpt:
“ISAF’s accomplishments are real and tangible to the citizens of Afghanistan…. our progress in Afghanistan is real but it is fragile…. Consider that earlier this year the U.S. extended its Aviation Bridging Force in Afghanistan in Kandahar because the mightiest and wealthiest military alliance in the history of the world was unable to produce 16 helicopters needed by the ISAF commander. Sixteen.
Meeting commitments means assuming some level of risk and asserting the political will necessary to deploy armed forces beyond one’s borders – fully manned and equipped, and without restrictions that undermine the mission. In Afghanistan, a handful of allies are paying the price and bearing the burdens of allies to create the secure environment necessary for economic development, building civic institutions, and establishing the rule of law. The failure to meet commitments puts the Afghan mission – and with it, the credibility of NATO – at real risk.”
Aug 17/07: Hummingbird Aviation, LLC in Hammond, LA, won an indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) type contract for $112.3 million “to perform services necessary to perform rotary wing transportation services to transport Class I-X supplies, U.S. Mail and passengers. Rotary wing transportation services are to be performed in Afghanistan at military airfields.”
Services will be performed from Oct 1/07 – Sept 30/09 (the Pentagon’s FY08-FY09 period). This contract was competitively procured, with 2 offers received by the USTRANSCOM Directorate of Acquisitions at Scott Air Force Base, IL (HTC711-07-D-0033).
Additional Readings
Other contractors are also involved.
- US Council on Foreign Relations (April 1/09) – Essential Documents: NATO’s Afghanistan Report, 2009
- DID – Let’s Stay Engaged: CH-47D Chinooks for Canada’s Afghan Mission. Bought in 2008 from US Army stocks, after Canada’s Parliament threatened to pull out unless Canadian Forces soldiers were given in-theater helicopter support. Now deployed in Kandahar, alongside upgraded Bell 412s.
- DID – EU Procurement Challenges & Defense Weakness Debated. The subject has been under discussion for some time.
- Defense News (March 16/10) – Italian Navy To Deploy AW101 Helos To Afghanistan. Three AW101 med-heavy helicopters will replace lighter Navy/AF twin-Hueys in current use.
- Vertical magazine (Aug-Sept 2008) – A 21st Century S-61 [PDF]. Detailed profile of the S-61T.
- American Forces Press Service (June 23/08) – ‘Jingle Air’ Supplies Isolated Soldiers.” Using its fleet of Mi-8 helicopters.
- Aviation Week (Nov 25/07) – NATO Accelerates Search For More Helicopters For Afghanistan Operations
- DID (Nov 6/07) – NATO About to Lease Troop Helis for Afghanistan?
- Globe & Mail (Oct 24/07) – Beleaguered NATO set to charter helicopters: decision would help protect Canadian troops
- CASR (October 2007) – Medium-Lift Helicopter -Mil Mi-17 (V5) Hip-H. Specifically addresses charter issues and likely costs.
- CASR (March 2007) – Sciroccos in Springtime? Substitute Chinooks for SW Afghanistan: Italian Chinooks in South West Asia and the Esercito CH-47 Fleet. In July 2008, Italy eased some of the restrictions on its forces’ deployment and use. Italian forces currently operate in the RC-West district around Herat, and the capital region of Kabul. As of early 2009, Italy deploys 4 CH-47C heavy transport helicopters, 6 A129 Mangusta attack helicopters, and 3 AB-212 twin-Hueys in those regions, and will add 3 AB-412 twin-Hueys before the Afghan elections.
