MOSCOW. Nov 28 (Interfax-AVN) - Active three-month talks of the Rosoboronexport state-owned arms trader and Kamov helicopter building company with Turkey on transfer of the rights to produce KA-50-2 Erdogan to Turkey have been constructive, Veniamin Kasyanikov, Kamov deputy chief designer, told Interfax-Military News Agency Thursday.
He said that the Turkish party sometimes went as far as to compromise things hardly ever discussed before.
"The tune taken by the talks testifies that for Turkey these talks are not only an instrument on pressure on the United States right to develop and produce attack helicopters in Turkey - Interfax-AVN]; the interest in Russian proposals for transfer of rights for production, including technology, appears great and sincere," he said.
Interfax-AVN asked Kasyanikov to comment on media reports on Bell's latest proposal to decrease the cost of a single piece from USD53m to USD45m, while Kamov is ready to provide Erdogans for USD38m each.
According to Kasyanikov, these figures show the acquisition cost-to-quantity ratio, but the contract includes not only the aircraft, but also such issues as license for production of the helicopter, MRO assets, spare parts, simulators, training, and other provisions. Thus to judge the cost per make by this "contract price" is incorrect.
In the Turkish tender, the overall program cost and quantity of the helicopters, as well as the provisions for delivery of ready-to-assemble helicopters to Turkey and licensed assembly, have been repeatedly altered, but anyway both the price and the overall contract cost offered by Kamov are lower than those offered by Bell, Kasyanikov said.
"Stertching it a little, one can say that the above- mentioned Kamov-to-Bell price ratio in the Turkish tender is correct," he also said.
He added that Bell, one of the tender's winners, "has so far fulfilled no tender commitments to transfer rights for licensed production of separate systems and components of the King Cobra to Turkey."
Kamov Director General and Constructor General Sergei Mikheyev earlier told Interfax-AVN that Russia offers Turkey the most advantageous conditions for construction of combat and civilian helicopters in that country's territory,.
"In fact, we offer the creation of a national helicopter building industry in Turkey. Our proposal is to design and mass- produce both combat helicopters of the KA-50-2 Erdogan type and light multirole helicopters of the KA-115 type in cooperation with Ankara and in its territory. Proposals for such an offset agreement providing for the return of funds invested in the project have been transferred to the Turkish party. Discussion of the proposals is underway," Mikheyev said.
The director recalled that Russia had been competing for the Turkish contract for the development and production of a batch of strike helicopters since 1997. Originally the competition involved five leading helicopter-building companies of the world, but now there are only two participants - Kamov with the KA-50-2 Erdogan helicopter and Bell with the AH-1Z King Cobra helicopter.
Turkey has been working with the U.S. party for the past two years, but "their work has not come close to practical realization of the contract," Mikheyev said.
"According to our data, Turkey wants to make its choice of the helicopter project already this year, and we are ready to sign an offset agreement that would be the most profitable for Ankara," Mikheyev concluded.