Abstract
The Hylleraas-Scherr-Knight variation-perturbation method is applied to the calculation of oscillator strengths for the dominant transitions from the metastable 2p3pP3 and 2p3dD1,3 states of helium and the heliumlike ions. The results explain the absence of the 1s2pP32p3pP3 transition of He i from recent beam-foil excitation spectra.