McDonnell-Led Team Wins British Copter Contract

A team headed by McDonnell Douglas Corp. and Britain’s Westland Group, a unit of GKN, has won a $4-billion contract from the British government for 67 army helicopters.

The long-awaited decision is seen as an important victory for St. Louis-based McDonnell Douglas’ helicopter division, which is increasingly looking overseas to sell its Apache helicopters as the post-Cold War U.S. military budget dwindles.

McDonnell Douglas’ helicopter group is based in Mesa, Ariz., so the British order won’t affect the company’s Southern California operations, McDonnell spokesman Hal Klopper said. However, some of McDonnell’s California-based subcontractors on the Apache should benefit, including Teledyne Inc., whose Teledyne Ryan Aeronautical division in San Diego makes the Apache’s fuselages, Klopper said.

The award also is seen as a painful defeat for a group of European helicopter makers, which was vying for one of the biggest military contracts of the decade.

“It’s quite a blow to the European helicopter business,” said Paul Nisbet, an analyst with JSA Research.

For McDonnell’s helicopter division in Mesa, which is operating at about 25% capacity, the additional work is important to remain strong in the business, Nisbet said.