Czech army faces helicopter delivery delays amid US backlog
As reported by the portal Militarnyj, the Czech army will not receive the helicopters the USA promised in 2022 as compensation for assisting Ukraine for several more years. The delivery schedule has been altered multiple times, with current plans estimating delivery "between the end of 2027 and 2028."
In its search for new helicopters, Prague reached an agreement with the United States in 2019. A contract was signed at that time, under which the Czech army was to be enhanced with 12 helicopters – four AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and eight UH-1Y Venom multi-role helicopters. These aircraft have already been delivered in phases, with the final batch set to arrive in the Czech Republic in June 2024.
The Czechs are waiting for compensation for helping Ukraine
However, the issue arises with the next eight helicopters of this type, which the United States has agreed to provide free of charge (excluding upgrade and transport expenses) under the Excess Defence Article (EDA) as compensation for aiding Ukraine. Prague has been a steadfast ally of Kyiv and decided to send some of its older helicopters, the Mi-24 and Mi-35 models, to the front.
Initial forecasts assumed that six AH-1Z Viper and two UH-1Y Venom from the U.S. Marine Corps could be refurbished and handed over to the Czech army by the end of 2023. Over time, the delivery date was postponed to 2025 and 2026, but these plans are now outdated.
Lubor Koudelka, head of the armament section at the Czech Ministry of Defence, says the helicopters should be delivered between the end of 2027 and 2028.
Modern helicopters of the Czech army
The reason for this delay is that the United States is "overwhelmed with orders," and the factories there cannot prepare helicopters for the Czech Republic any faster.
The aircraft produced by Bell Helicopter Textron represent a significant step in modernising the Czech air force. They offer far greater capabilities than the Soviet-era helicopters that Prague decided to send to support Kyiv.
The AH-1Z Viper is an attack helicopter nearly 18 metres long. It features an M197 20 mm cannon but is also equipped to carry other weapons, including the Hydra 70 rockets that the Czechs opted for.
The UH-1Y Venom, meanwhile, is a multi-role helicopter with very similar dimensions to the AH-1Z Viper but achieves a slightly higher maximum speed (over 300 km/h). The interior of this machine is designed for a larger crew and somewhat different armaments – 7.62 mm and 12.7 mm machine guns. The UH-1Y Venom can carry additional weapons on external mounts, but on two pylons rather than six, as with the AH-1Z Viper.
