The decision to permanently ground the Australian Defence Force’s fleet of MRH-90 Taipan helicopters was the final chapter in the saga that was Project Air 9000 Phases 2, 4 and 6. (Australian Strategic Policy Institute. The Strategist)
At the time, both contenders (the MRH-90 and the S-70M version of the Blackhawk) were new and somewhat immature and untried designs without many data points on which to base a long-term ownership decision. But rather than conduct a rigorous ‘fly off’ to inform a decision, a less than ideal paper comparison was used to select a preferred option.
