KIELCE, Poland — In early September, Bell obtained a foreign military deal worth $272 million from the U.S. Navy to supply eight UH-1Y Venom and four AH-1Z Viper helos to the Czech Republic. With the 12 copters scheduled to be produced for the Czech Air Force until November 2023, the U.S. manufacturer is on the prowl for further aircraft orders across the region.
At the MSPO defense-industry show in Kielce, company representatives presented their offer for the Polish military which aims to acquire 32 multirole helos under the Perkoz program, and a further 32 combat helos under the Kruk program in the coming years. Bell says it is offering the AH-1Z Viper for the Kruk program.
“The Czech Republic is the first European country to buy both platforms together,” said Joel Best, the director for global military sales and strategy at Bell. “When you look for a package that would also fit the Perkoz program, we have the capacity to mix different functionalities” with these two helos, he said.
Poland’s two copter acquisitions are to be be carried out as part of the Polish Defence Ministry’s Technical Modernization Plan until 2026. The plan foresees a number of military acquisitions for a total of PLN 185 billion ($49 billion).
Jaroslaw Adamowski is the Poland correspondent for Defense News.
