Leonardo won’t challenge Army plan

Leonardo Helicopters is backing down from its challenge to U.S. Army’s plans to purchase more Airbus Helicopter’s UH-72A Lakotas, ending a three-year legal battle that had become increasingly heated. The Army competitively selected the UH-72A as its Light Utility Helicopter in 2006. The aircraft became the Army’s primary training helicopter under the terms of the 2013 Aviation Restructure Initiative. AHI-Columbus, Miss., has built hundreds of UH-72s for Army Aviation training, primarily at Fort Rucker, Ala. In a statement to Vertical on Feb. 12, the company declared: “In light of the appellate court ruling, Leonardo Helicopters has decided to discontinue any further legal action regarding the sole-source award of trainer helicopters to the U.S. Army.” The ruling was a Jan. 23 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals, which overturned a lower court’s injunction against the Army’s purchase of 16 Lakotas from Airbus Helicopters Inc. (Source: Vertical 02/12/18)