Meehan probes DoD helicopter decision

Rep. Patrick Meehan (R-Pa.) recently joined a bipartisan group of lawmakers who raised questions about the Department of Defense’s decision to equip security forces in Afghanistan with helicopters built in Russia.

The DoD elected to purchase Russian Mi-17 “Hip” helicopters rather than CH-47 Chinook helicopters built by Boeing in Pennsylvania.

Meehan and Reps. John Carney (D-Del.), Robert Brady (D-Pa.) Jim Gerlach (R-Pa.), Chaka Fattah (D-Pa.) and Allyson Schwartz (D-Pa.) voiced concern about the decision in a letter to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel.

“As lawmakers who represent the workers who make the CH-47 Chinook at the Boeing Facility located in Ridley Park, Pa., we respectfully request clarification on the allegations that the Pentagon overruled a recommendation to buy an American-made aircraft,” the legislators said.

The Chinook would be the most cost-effective helicopter for the Afghan Air Force over a 20-year period, according to an internal study by the DoD.

The lawmakers questioned why, if the study is correct, a fleet of Russian-made helicopters was selected over a fleet of Chinook helicopters. The congressman also questioned the role of high-ranking DoD officials in overruling the study’s recommendation to purchase Chinooks.

Meehan and the lawmakers requested clarification and a briefing on Capitol Hill on the matter in January.