YEOVIL, England, Sept 22, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The VH-71 presidential helicopter program achieved another major milestone today when the first operational pilot production helicopter (PP-1) completed its maiden flight at AgustaWestland's facility in Yeovil, England.
First VH-71 Presidential Helicopter Production Aircraft Takes Flight - MarketWatch
Back on Capitol Hill, the Marine One fallout was predictable. Congressional delegations from the affected states uniformly backed the helicopter model that boosted constituencies.
U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D), for example, called the Navy's selection of the Lockheed team "a great day for Owego, the Southern Tier and all of New York [that] will provide the president of the United States with a state-of-the-art-helicopter [and] an Oval Office in the sky."
The winning Marine One model is a variation of Agusta-Westland's EH-101, pictured during its U.S. tour last year to
drum up support.
That reaction contrasted sharply with that of the congressional delegation from Connecticut, home base of Sikorsky, part of United Technologies Corp..
"Made in America should mean something," U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D) charged. "The Defense Department has some explaining to do."
Sen. Chris Dodd, (D), called Lockheed's contract award "an affront to the American worker," while Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D) labeled the decision "outrageously wrong."
Then Congress approves the purchase of over 1B for the purchase of thise helicopter for the president. So here is the update, First it has been decided that to fulfill the needs of the contract that the promised 1000 jobs will never happen and the majority of the contract will be fulfilled overseas. So the next president will be flying in a foreign made helicopter, approved by congress, and done so at the expense of the American Defense industry. So where is John McCain and Barack Obama stand in all this "crickets" they have no opinion.
So you still think congress has our best interests at heart?
First VH-71 Presidential Helicopter Production Aircraft Takes Flight - MarketWatch
Back on Capitol Hill, the Marine One fallout was predictable. Congressional delegations from the affected states uniformly backed the helicopter model that boosted constituencies.
U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D), for example, called the Navy's selection of the Lockheed team "a great day for Owego, the Southern Tier and all of New York [that] will provide the president of the United States with a state-of-the-art-helicopter [and] an Oval Office in the sky."
The winning Marine One model is a variation of Agusta-Westland's EH-101, pictured during its U.S. tour last year to
drum up support.
That reaction contrasted sharply with that of the congressional delegation from Connecticut, home base of Sikorsky, part of United Technologies Corp..
"Made in America should mean something," U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D) charged. "The Defense Department has some explaining to do."
Sen. Chris Dodd, (D), called Lockheed's contract award "an affront to the American worker," while Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D) labeled the decision "outrageously wrong."
Then Congress approves the purchase of over 1B for the purchase of thise helicopter for the president. So here is the update, First it has been decided that to fulfill the needs of the contract that the promised 1000 jobs will never happen and the majority of the contract will be fulfilled overseas. So the next president will be flying in a foreign made helicopter, approved by congress, and done so at the expense of the American Defense industry. So where is John McCain and Barack Obama stand in all this "crickets" they have no opinion.
So you still think congress has our best interests at heart?