New NH-90 Helicopter Still Too Heavy

[tigershark]

   New NH-90 Helicopter Still Too Heavy
(Source: ANP Dutch Press Agency; issued June 11, 2009)
 
   
   (Issued in Dutch only; translation by defense-aerospace.com)
 
 
   
   THE HAGUE --- State Secretary of Defence Jack de Vries on Wednesday had “bad news” for the House of Commons, he said. The NH-90 helicopter ordered by the Ministry of Defence is still heavier than planned.

[Program prime contractor] NH Industries had announced measures to reduce the helicopter’s weight, but these have not had the desired result. The weight of the aircraft has been a problem for years. This is important because the additional weight makes them too heavy to land on the Dutch navy frigates for which they are intended.

The Netherlands decided in 1991 to participate in the NH-90 program, and ordered twenty [of the NFH-90 naval variant] which should have replaced the current Lynx ship-borne helicopters beginning in 2007.

However, because of the recurring weight issue, that date has been moved back several times. The latest date for their initial delivery has now been pushed back to 2011, de Vries said.

It is not possible to rule out further delays, nor to say what extra costs will arise from the delays, he added.

-ends-

Source
http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articles-view/release/3/105973/nh_90-still-too-heavy-for-dutch-frigates.html

[tigershark]

I never seen anything mentioned about the weight being too high before were the Dutch the only users planning on using it in a naval role? 

[Eldorado82]

where are engineers in here? do they have any in the staff? how it can be that an aircraft is planned and only in the end it reveals being too heavy? where is planning dept.?

[tigershark]

I don't get it either I thought one of the selling points for the NH-90 is that its in a ten-ton class, built out of light weight material, carry's 20 combat troops, greatest helicopter ever, loved by all, chosen by a ungodly amount of countries.  The greatest thing since slice bread etc.

To me it always seem to have too many hands in the pot, I assume they had to hold shareholder meeting on every little thing.