Bell Helicopter: Romania may produce Bell attack helicopters

Romania could be the first country to produce Bell Helicopter attack helicopters in the next 4-5 years, said Bell Helicopter deputy president Richard Harris. However, the decision needs to be taken at government level. The talks between US president Donald Trump and Romanian president Klaus Iohannis are key to defining the overall framework of the partnership between the United States and Romania, Harris added, reports local Economica.net. "In the beginning, the first 5-6 helicopters would be produced in the US, a process involving Romanian specialists, the transfer of technology and the training of specialists being gradual. It is a process that takes quite a while, namely 4-5 years," he said. Bell Helicopter had an attempt to build an attack helicopter in Romania in 1996, the AH-1 Cobra model, which had to be named Dracula. However, this hasn’t happened because of political reasons. “Now, we want to revive the Dracula project with a newer and better performance model,” he added. The company already suggested Romania to take part in the tender for the contract to manufacture the rear part of the Viper helicopter. "If Romania were to win the auction and move to the production of a part of the helicopter, then it would be easier to produce the entire helicopter," Harris said. editor@romania-insider.com (photo source: Wikipedia)