CASR

- Canadian Defence Policy, Foreign Policy, & Canada-US Relations -

In Detail —— the Maritime Helicopter Project ——

by ST Priestley

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In Detail

DND 101 CH-124

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Canadian Defence Procurement  —  updated and revised January 2004 Politics, Procurement Practices, and Procrastination: the Quarter-Century Sea King Helicopter Replacement Saga MHP Sidebar  —  the Liberals Try Thinking Small  With a Sea-Going Griffon Although DND regarded the Sea Lynx to be too small for CF needs,  the Liberals seriously considered a less capable alternative. In 1993, the CF was receiving 100 CH-146 Griffon tactical helicopters [right] based on Bell's 412 utility model. These Griffons were built in Montreal, used Canadian engines, and – best of all – they were comparatively cheap. Could not a naval derivative of this Canadian-built utility helicopter fill most of the CF's shipboard aircraft requirements? The idea was not quite as absurd as it sounds. In Italy, Agusta had developed ASW variants of their licence-built Bell helicopters including the AB 212 [left]. To replace naval AB212s [1], Agusta was marinizing the new AB412 Grifone [below, left]. Similar work was underway in the US where 412s [2] were also being modified for naval use [right].  Adapting the 412s for shipboard use was no easy task. Whereas the Model 212s had compact twin-blade main rotors, the Model 412s had four blades. To fit into ships' hangars, the rotor blades would have to fold. [3] And, modifications such as these added weight. The great appeal of a naval CH-146 would have been overall commonality with their Army kin.  The downside would have been a lack of load-carrying capability  – already an issue for the CF's utility Griffon without the extra weight of navalization. Other than commonality, low price and being Canadian-made, 'Sea Griffons' would have had very little appeal.  DND certainly wasn't going to take this proposal seriously. It would be safe to say that a navalized Griffon would be exactly what DND wasn't looking for to replace its Sea King fleet. The Griffon has a cabin 1.25m high with a total capacity of 6.25 m3. Compare with the Sea King cabin which has a capacity of 28m3 and is 1.92m high. A Griffon has roughly half the payload of a Sea King. The final objection is the Griffon's skid undercarriage. In rough weather, the CF uses the beartrap haul-down device to tow helicopters safely into the ship's hangar. This operation is no longer feasible without wheels. [1] Obviously, Agusta AB412 Grifone are the Italian-built version of the CH-146. The older two-bladed AB212 was equivalent to the CF's now-retired Twin Huey. [2]  Heli-Dyne of Dallas, Texas modifies the Bell airframes for naval use resulting in the BH412EP Sentinel. Heli-Dyne's development prototype illustrated [above, right] has a 360° search radar in the drooped nose radome and an infrared imager. [3]  Bell and Agusta proposed folding blades for the naval 412. The arrangement arrived at was bizarre. Traditionally, naval helicopter rotor blades fold at the hub. Bell's approach was radically different – each blade folding at roughly mid-span. <  Part 13  —  Simultaneously Running Out of Time, Options, and Alternatives >  Part 14  —  the 1994 Defence White Paper and Cormorant SAR Helicopters