Airbus Wins Tiger Helicopter Global Support Contract

Airbus and OCCAR (Organisation Conjointe de Coopération en matière d'Armement / Organisation for Joint Armament Co-operation) have signed a tri-lateral Global Support Contract aimed at boosting the availability rate of the Tigers in service in the French, German, and Spanish Armies.

With this long-term support agreement, Tiger readiness and supportability will be secured for the next decade and beyond, Airbus said in a statement Tuesday.

The contract covers critical items such as continuous improvement and obsolescence treatment as well as securing repair and spares capabilities with all vendors involved. In addition, it provides for the individual needs of each customer in line with their operational and deployment scenarios.

For instance, in France, the agreement guarantees parts availability up to 98% and provides for the simplification of logistics as Airbus Helicopters will also directly take over the provisioning of new parts, as well as repaired parts and other expendables.

At present 183 Tigers have been delivered to France, Germany, Spain, and Australia. The French Army first deployed the rotorcraft in Afghanistan in 2009.