Paris-New helicopter devel-opment programs are few and far between, and are likely to become even rarer as the exponential growth of development costs makes upgrades look ever more attractive. It also is a rare coincidence when several countries find they have a common requirement, and even rarer that they also have a common timeline for it. When all these factors combine, they create a fertile ground for international cooperation, which if properly managed very substantially lowers the total cost of a new rotorcraft program to each participant. These preconditions now exist thanks to broadly similar military requirements, and broadly similar timelines, for heavy-lift helicopters on both sides of the Atlantic. They offer a unique opportunity for transatlantic cooperation that should not be squandered.
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