FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 28, 2005

LARSON STATEMENT ON MARINE ONE DECISION

HARTFORD- U.S. Congressman John B. Larson (CT-1) today gave the following statement on the decision of the Defense Department to award the contract for the Marine One Presidential Helicopter to a consortium that includes a foreign company, instead of the Connecticut-based American manufacturer, Sikorksy.

�Clearly this is a great disappointment for the state and an embarrassment for the nation,� said Larson. �Sikorsky has been producing the Marine One presidential helicopter fleet since the Eisenhower administration and now future presidents will be flying in a helicopter made in part by a foreign company. Today�s decision is not just about one contract for one kind of aircraft. It is a symptom of a more serious illness, which is the European Union�s effort to overtake the U.S. in the aerospace and aviation market, resulting in a loss of U.S. jobs and American work being sent overseas. The fact the decision to award this contract to a consortium that includes a European company was made by our own Defense Department is a slap in the face to Connecticut and American aerospace workers.�

###