Problems Discovered In The Contract That Was Awarded Last Year

An $11 billion program for Search and Rescue helicopter services in the U.K. was dumped on Tuesday after the winning contractor owned up to irregularities in the bidding process.

Soteria Sea King File Photo

Soteria, the company which won the contract, reportedly came forward in December "to inform the government of irregularities regarding the conduct" of its bid team, according to a statement from the Department for Transport. The DoT had worked with the Ministry of Defense to tender the contract.

Soteria had planned to replace Sikorsky S-61 Sea Kings with new S-92 helicopters. The service would have been coordinated through the MoD and the U.K. Coastguard. However, the Wall Street Journal and the French news service AFP report that a Canadian firm which was part of the consortium, CHC Helicopter, apparently had access to inside information on the project's evaluation.

In a statement posted on the Soteria website, the company expressed disappointment in the cancellation of the program. "We remain confident that Soteria was designated as the preferred bidder for the SAR-H program as a result of the value, expertise, dedication, excellence and exceptional technical solution that Soteria can provide in leading search-and-rescue efforts across the U.K.," the company said in its statement. "Soteria is evaluating the government's decision and if given the opportunity is confident that it is capable of delivering the SAR-H program and stands ready to work with the UK government."

On its website, CHC said the issue was contained to a few individuals operating without the company's knowledge. "CHC wishes to make it a matter of public record that in November of last year CHC became aware that a small number of its employees acting without its knowledge or authorization of the company's senior management may have violated the company's high standard of ethics during its participation in the competitive bid process.
 
"As soon as CHC became aware of the perceived irregularities it upheld those standards. It proactively and speedily approached the government to advise them of the circumstances - without regard to the potential consequences of raising the matter. Since then CHC Helicopter and its partners in Soteria have co-operated fully with the government.
 
"CHC has a distinguished history of service in the UK and in more than 30 other countries around the world and we take our commitment to ethical conduct very seriously. We look forward to continuing our working relationship with the UK government."

That government plans an investigation into how the CHC employees came to be in possession of the bid information. Until then, the program is on indefinite hold.

FMI: www.soteriasar.com, www.chc.ca