Army Secretary Pete Geren said the armed services learned important lessons from a canceled $6.2 billion armed reconnaissance helicopter led by Textron Inc Bell Helicopter unit. Geren's comments were centered on the Pentagon canceling the Textron program last month after the cost of each helicopter soared nearly 70 percent to $14.5 million. Chief arms buyer John Young said it would be better to start from scratch than continue the existing program. “It's a case study in how things can go wrong. There were lessons learned for industry and government. And we will do better this time,” he told press after a speech to the Center for National Policy. He did not elaborate on how the new program would differ. The Army is currently seeking industry input for a new Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) program that will likely include offers from Boeing, Sikorsky Aircraft, a unit of United Technologies Corp, AgustaWestland, a unit of Italy's Finmeccanica and EADS. Army officials have said Bell was welcome to bid as well, but they noted that past performance would be a key factor in assessing bids in the new program.
