In July of 1981, the U. S. Coast Guard awarded a contract to Sperry Corp. for two flight simulators. One simulator was for a recent addition to the Coast Guard inventory, the HU-25A. The HU-25A, a fixed wing Medium Range Surveillance (MRS), is a modified Falcon 20. The other simulator was for the HH-65A, a modified Aerospatiale Dauphin helicopter. The HH-65A was still in development when the simulator contract was awarded so the aircraft and simulator were being produced concurrently. The project officer for the HH-65A simulator was involved in the entire acquisition process - from draft specifications to ready-for-training date.