The US Department of Defense has approved a possible sale of eight Boeing AH-6I attack helicopters to Thailand.
The value of the deal is $400 million, to be realized through the US government's Foreign Military Sales (FMS) process. This value also includes a package of weapons, sensors, training and other for the Thai military.
"As part of a broader military modernization effort, these AH-6U helicopters will provide light attack reconnaissance for close air to special operations forces, Stryker infantrymen and border guard units."
According to the Flight Global website, other companies are in the dispute and are offering helicopters, such as Bell with the AH-1Z Viper, Boeing (AH-64 Apache), Airbus Helicopters (Tiger) and Turkish Aerospace (T129).
The renewal of Thailand's attack helicopter fleet is important as the current fleet consists of seven Bell AH-1F Cobras, with an average age of 37 years, and there have already been accidents with this helicopter.
source: Flight Global/ Adaptation: Aeroflap
