COLUMBUS, Miss.–The Lakota helicopter built in Mississippi, at EADS North America in Columbus, got a boost Wednesday when the U.S. Army decided to put $22.8 million into more helicopters for military action and training.
U.S. Sen. Thatd Cochran, vice-chairman of the Senate Defense Appropriations Committee, said Wednesday that more UH-72A Lakota helicopters would be produced in Mississippi with the new contract, and would be completed in March 2015.
“I am proud of the manufacturing capabilities and technical expertise of our workers in Mississippi, whose efforts support Army missions both at home and broad,” said Cochran. “This contract modification can be seen as confirmation of those abilities.”
The FY2014 omnibus appropriations act enacted in January provided $171 million to support the procurement of additional UH-72A Lakota helicopters, which is considered one of the most cost-effective programs in the military, according to a Wednesday news release from Cochran. In addition to being used for military missions, these helicopters are used to support disaster response, border protection and pilot training.
