空中客車或對日本防衛省採取法律行動

Airbus H160 helicopter

空中客車H160直升機

Airbus is eyeing legal action against Japan’s ministry of defence after losing out on a multibillion-dollar deal to supply helicopters to the country’s ground self-defence forces, said people familiar with the situation.

知情人士表示，空中客車(Airbus)正考慮對日本防衛省採取法律行動，原因是該公司在向日本陸上自衛隊供應直升機的競標中敗北，丟掉了價值數十億美元的訂單。

There was industry-wide surprise in July when the defence ministry awarded a contract to a consortium of Bell Helicopter of the US and Japan’s Fuji Heavy Industries to supply 150 military helicopters to the self-defence forces.

今年7月，日本防衛省將一份向自衛隊供應150架軍用直升機的合同，授予了由美國貝爾直升機(Bell Helicopter)和日本富士重工(Fuji Heavy Industries)組成的聯合體。此舉令整個軍工行業都感到意外。

The deal — estimated to be worth $2bn to the Bell-Fuji consortium — throws a lifeline to the Japanese group’s helicopter operations, which have been struggling to secure orders since 2007.

這筆對貝爾-富士聯合體估計價值20億美元的交易，爲富士重工的直升機業務帶來一線生機。自2007年以來，這家日本集團一直難以獲得訂單。

Airbus teamed up with Kawasaki Heavy Industries to bid for the contract, known as the UH-X programme.

空客則與川崎重工(Kawasaki Heavy Industries)結成了同盟，競標這一名爲“UH-X計劃”的合同。

Legal action by Airbus against Japan’s defence ministry over the tender process is described by western diplomats and industry insiders as “one of several possible avenues of complaint” being considered by the European aerospace group. The Airbus-Kawasaki bid, which proposed a new version of the Airbus H160 helicopter, was seen as the strong favourite until just a few weeks before the defence ministry’s decision was unveiled.

西方外交官及業內人士稱，空客就招投標過程對日本防衛省採取法律行動，是這家歐洲航空航天集團正在考慮的“幾種可能申訴方式之一”。空客-川崎聯合體在投標中提出了一種新版空客H160直升機(Airbus H160)。直到日本防衛省公佈決定的數週前，它們的投標還被認爲獲勝可能性極大。

Bell-Fuji offered a cheaper, modestly modified version of the Bell 412EPI — a derivative of a helicopter that has been in use since before the Vietnam war.

貝爾-富士拿出的則是更廉價的小幅修改版貝爾412EPI (Bell 412EPI)。貝爾412EPI是一款從越南戰爭前就一直在使用的直升機的衍生版本。

Airbus declined to comment on the possibility of taking legal action against the Japanese defence ministry.

空客拒絕就針對日本防衛省採取法律行動的可能性置評。

However, some of its senior executives have alleged privately that the Japanese selection process was not transparent, may have come under political pressure and failed to give appropriate weighting to the future export potential of its proposed design, said people familiar with the situation.

不過，知情人士表示，部分空客高管私下裏曾指責說，日方遴選過程不透明，可能遭遇了政治壓力，而且未能對該公司設計方案未來的出口潛力給予適當的重視。

Richard Thornley, managing director for Bell Helicopter in Japan, said the Bell-Fuji proposal would deliver a cost-effective, capable and reliable replacement for the ground self-defence forces’ current fleet of ageing Bell-Fuji UH-1J aircraft.

貝爾直升機駐日本董事總經理理查德∠楽利(Richard Thornley)表示，貝爾-富士的方案會爲日本陸上自衛隊現有的日益老化的貝爾-富士UH-1J (Bell-Fuji UH-1J)直升機羣，提供成本低廉、功能適用而又可靠的替換品。

A spokesman for the Japanese defence ministry declined to comment on any potential legal action by Airbus but said the selection process had been appropriate, fair and fully transparent.

日本防衛省發言人拒絕就空客可能採取的法律行動置評，不過，該發言人表示遴選過程適當、公平而且完全透明。

One industry veteran familiar with Airbus said the company may have lost the helicopter contract after lobbying by the US government on Bell Helicopter’s behalf. “When there is a US bidder involved there is always the feeling that pressure may have come directly from the US,” he added.

一位熟悉空客的業內資深人士表示，該公司可能是在美國政府爲貝爾直升機展開遊說後丟掉這一合同的。他補充說：“每當有美方競標者時，總能感到美國可能直接施加了壓力。”