U.S. approves helicopter sale worth $800 million to Iraq

An Iraqi airforce Bell 407 helicopter takes off in front of MI-35 and MI-28 helicopters at the army base of Qaryat Jaddalat, south of the city of Mosul on Nov. 25, 2016. - AFP
An Iraqi airforce Bell 407 helicopter takes off in front of MI-35 and MI-28 helicopters at the army base of Qaryat Jaddalat, south of the city of Mosul on Nov. 25, 2016. - AFP

DAMASCUS, Syria (North Press) – The U.S. State Department on Monday approved a sale of helicopters produced by Bell Helicopter, along with related systems and equipment, to Iraq for an estimated $800 million.

The deal includes Bell 412EPX and Bell 407M helicopters, as well as associated equipment and systems, the State Department said in a statement.

If completed, the contract will be carried out by U.S.-based contractor Bell-Textron, headquartered in Texas, according to the statement.

Iraq had previously requested the helicopters along with machine-gun mounting systems and equipment for launching unguided rockets, as well as various systems for navigation and communications, the State Department said.

The department added that the U.S. administration had notified Congress of its approval of the arms sale.

By Abdulsalam Khoja