You do not provide development cost figures for the new Huey, so we can only guess.  My guess is that those costs, over the eleven long years it took to get the new Huey into service, were outrageously high and wasteful in the extreme, particularly as measured against the per unit costs for such a small run and the unit costs of Blackawks. I mean, how can it be that the Blackhawk works for the Army, AF, Navy and numerous other nations by the hundreds or but not the Marines?  I suspect that the first rule of the contracting for this project is the same as the one for construction contracts for public works; ie NEVER kill the job.

 

The senselessness of this project adds to the stink that already emminates from the Corps' purchasing dept caused by their consistent and many times fatal failure to order MRAPs to protect Marines in Iraq until ordered to do so by Secretary Gates and their misrepresention of V-22 as being able to replace all the Corps' current copters.  Corps reps made this point to Congress repeatedly to justify continuing with the V-22 notwithstanding its very high development costs and Dick Cheney's attempt to kill it while he was Sec/Def.  Now it turns out that as good as the V-22 is turning out to be (and in my view  worth every overpriced dime we tax payers are paying for it), it can't replace the Sea Stallion, or so the Corps' brass would have us believe.  And so true to form the Corps has joyously embarked on another huge, costly, low production rate project, namely the Super Sea Stallion. 

 

This all makes one wonder what the real meaning of Semper Fi is today for the Corps' brass.  Perhaps being always faithful to never killing the job. 

Following up, AviationWeek in today's web edition (www.AviationNow.com) reports the the Marine Corps' AH-1Z, an elaborate and hugely expensive upgrade of the Cobra armed copter, will not even reach operational evaluation for two more years beause of what the Corps calls "crtical operational issues" related to weapons employment.  All will recall that the Cobra is based on the Huey.  Again, one wonders why the Apache would not have worked at a lot less cost for the 220 the Corps wants.  Your tax dollars (lots of them) at work. 

Simply put, the Apache would suck for what the Marine Corps does.  It can't effectively do running fire.  It has zero parts commonality with the Huey (the UH-1Y and AH-1Z have over 80% parts in common).  It is significantly harder to maintain in an expeditionary environment like Marines frequenly work in.  Its FLIR-based optics for the crew make it less able to do escort for assault aircraft, as well.  The Apache is great for taking on the Reds crossing the Fulda Gap, but isn't at all what the Corps needs.

 

You could argue the the Corps could use a DAP-equipped H-60 to take both the UH and AH roles, but this would require a big shift from current doctrine.  I think the idea might be worth studying, but one could go either way on it.

 

The V-22 is proving to be a huge success as it matures.  I would ideally like to get a next-generation (i.e. a high-speed tactical transport like a quad tiltrotor or composite-lift design) heavy-lift helo to replace the CH-53E, but unfortunately the demands on the HMH fleet mean that the Corps can't wait long for a successor.

 

Like any government agency, the Corps' aviation procurement isn't perfect, but the leadership is trying to get the best possible platforms out to the fleet.