Ukraine intends to acquire AH-1Z Viper attack and UH-1Y Venom transport helicopters from U.S. manufacturer Bell. The process has already begun with the signing of a letter of intent between the Ukrainian government and Bell.
According to the company, the agreement includes the "evaluation of approaches to industrial cooperation" as well as "Bell's cooperation with the U.S. government," aiming to organize sales through the Foreign Military Sale (FMS) program.
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It should be noted that for arms purchases from the U.S., the agreement is not made directly with the manufacturer, but between the governments. In other words, Ukraine must sign an agreement with the U.S. government, which will order the helicopters from Bell. At the same time, Bell's plans to sell helicopters to Ukraine also create another path for collaboration with Washington to accelerate the process.
Bell stated that "this initiative has been in the works for some time, and we look forward to its completion." Ultimately, this is how cooperation with any reputable defense company is established.
It should be noted that the AH-1Z Viper and UH-1Y Venom are the latest upgrades of the legendary AH-1 Cobra and UH-1 Iroquois helicopters. The latter is an iconic helicopter from the Vietnam War era. In terms of replacing the Soviet Mi-24 and Mi-8, both Bell helicopters are considered a "pair," as they share 85% of their parts, which greatly simplifies maintenance.
Currently, both helicopters are in service with the U.S. Marine Corps and are also exported. The Czech Republic is among the latest buyers, having ordered 12 helicopters in 2019: four AH-1Z Vipers and eight UH-1Y Venoms, worth $622 million at the time.
Slovakia was to become another customer, receiving the right to purchase 12 Bell AH-1Z Vipers at a discount thanks to arms supplies to Ukraine. Instead of around $1 billion, the price was set at $600 million.
However, at the end of 2024, Bratislava decided not to purchase AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters or any Bell helicopters in general. Instead, it opted to purchase 12 UH-60 Black Hawk transport helicopters from Lockheed Martin.
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