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Bell Completes AH-1Z Programme of Record

189th Delivery Fulfils USMC Requirement

Bell Textron Inc. delivered its 189th AH-1Z Viper on 2 November, bring to an end the US Marine Corps’ programme of record for the latest version of the attack helicopter. Having completed a similar programme for the UH-1Y Venom in 2018, the US military now has a combined total of 349 latest-generation H-1 aircraft in inventory.

The first production lot of US Marine Corps H-1s was ordered in 1962, and they changed the way Marines fight today,” commented Mike Deslatte, Bell H-1 VP and Program Director. “Completing the AH-1Z and UH-1Y deliveries to the US Marine Corps adds one more chapter to the legacy of the H-1 platform”.

Bell has been producing the iconic ‘Huey’ for the US military since 1959, creating the AH-1 Cobra as the first dedicated gunship in 1966. The current generation (AH-1Z Viper and UH-1Y Venom) represents the most agile, mobile, and survivable combination of aircraft used by US DoD. The 85% common platforms are the only two aircraft that share so much commonality, providing the Marines with logistical agility and reduced operating costs. The UH-1Y achieved initial operating capacity (IOC) in August 2008, the first combined Viper/Venom deployment with a Marine Expeditionary Unit occurred in 2009 and the AH-1Z reached IOC in February 2011.

H-1s are key to the 2022 Marine Corps Aviation Plan,” said Col Vasillios Pappas, Light/Attack Helicopters Program Manager (PMA-276). “With the US program of record now complete, the Marines have the flexibility to manage and deploy the helicopters based on current and future mission requirements as established at the start of the program”.

The H-1 production line is still active in support of foreign military sales and continues to produce AH-1Z Vipers for Bahrain. It will manufacture eight UH-1Ys and four AH-1Zs for the Czech Republic in 2023.

The mixed H-1 fleet has accumulated over 450,000 flight hours through a full spectrum of military operations since the initial AH-1Z/UH-1Y deliveries. Bell will continue to support US H-1s with lethality, survivability, and reliability upgrades through a long-term modernisation plan, helping to ensure the aircraft maintain an overwhelming tactical advantage for generations.

 

 

 

The combined fleet has over 450,000 flight hours under its communal belt. (Bell Textron)

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Publish date

11/03/2022

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