Chinook New Buy

The Capability

The UK currently has a fleet of 46 Chinook, delivered between 1981 and 2001. The new Rotary Wing Strategy, announced by the Secretary of State in December 2009, established that the Future Heavy Lift capability would be provided by the Chinook helicopter. The Rotary Wing Strategy set out the intention to buy an additional 22 new Chinook, in addition to the replacement for the two aircraft destroyed on operations in Afghanistan in August 2009 (for which approval will be sought through the HM Treasury Reserve), that would take the Chinook fleet up to 70 Aircraft.

Overview of Cost, Time and Performance

Approved

Forecast/Actual

Variation

IY Variation

Assessment Phase

£67m

£97m

+£30m

-

The Assessment Phase

In March 2010 Initial Gate approval for the Chinook New Buy project was granted to conduct an Assessment Phase at a total cost of £67 million. This funding approval assumed that a Main Gate Business Case would be presented in December 2010, and that a Demonstration and Manufacture contract would be placed shortly thereafter.

In April 2010 the Investment Approvals Board endorsed a Review Note to down-select to a preferred configuration for the new Chinooks. The configuration selected was the CH-47F equipped with a development of the Thales JULIUS cockpit and a digital automatic flight control system and current UK Chinook Theatre Entry Standard modifications.

The Strategic Defence and Security Review reduced the requirement to 14 aircraft (12 + 2 attrition) reflecting reprioritisation of resources. In April 2011 the Department's latest financial plan captured the Defence Board's direction to pursue a 14 Chinook aircraft programme that would see the first flight in quarter one of 2013 and all aircraft delivered by end of 2015. HM Treasury approved an Investment Approvals Board uplift to the Assessment Phase of £23.4 million in April 2011 as the Main-Gate investment decision is on hold, pending a review of affordability within the defence programme.