Australia will be receiving its MH-60R helicopter head of schedule as Sikorsky, a division of United Technologies [UTX], deliver the first MH-60R Seahawk to the U.S. Navy, the initial step in the process to transfer a mission-ready aircraft to the Australian Defense Force in December 2013.
“Delivery and first flight of an Australian MH-60R aircraft in late June occurred only two years after contract signature, some six months ahead of the original schedule approved by the Australian Government in 2011,” said Capt. Scott Lockey, project director at the Defense Materiel Organization (DMO), which is procuring 24 MH-60R anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare helicopters for the Royal Australian Navy. “This is a magnificent outcome for our program.”
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| MH-60R Photo: Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. |
During a July 23 ceremony near the Seahawk production line at Sikorsky’s Stratford, Conn., facility to mark the June 29 initial delivery, representatives of the U.S. Navy, Royal Australian Navy, the DMO and mission systems integrator Lockheed Martin [LMT] heard Lockey from Australia via video.
On July 24, the first Royal Australian Navy MH-60R aircraft arrived at Lockheed Martin Mission Systems & Training in Owego, N.Y., for the second phase of aircraft completion–installation of the digital cockpit and integrated mission systems and sensors.
Lockey added, “The Romeo will be a significant contributor to maritime security in our region, and will provide the Royal Australian Navy with the most capable anti-surface and anti-submarine helicopter available today. I know that the efforts of the U.S. Navy, Sikorsky and other industry partners will ensure that the Romeo maintains superiority in its primary roles throughout its life.”
Three additional MH-60R helicopters for the RAN are in various stages of assembly at the Sikorsky Seahawk completion line in Stratford. Those aircraft will be handed over to the U.S. Navy in August and September 2013 for completion by Lockheed Martin in early 2014.
The DMO is expected to take delivery of all 24 completed MH-60R aircraft by late 2016 via the U.S. Government’s Foreign Military Sales program.
“The efficiencies of a multi-year H-60 helicopter contract with the U.S. Government, and close collaboration with the U.S. Navy and Australia’s Defense Materiel Organization, have enabled us to begin assembling Australia’s MH-60R aircraft ahead of schedule,” said Dave Zack, Sikorsky’s director of Maritime Helicopter Programs. “The men and women of Sikorsky are honored to continue supporting the Australian Defense Force with advanced capability Seahawk helicopters.”
The Australian Defence Force currently operates 16 S-70B-2 SEAHAWK helicopters acquired in the 1980s. The first Australian MH-60R helicopter is the 168th Romeo model produced by Sikorsky since deliveries to the U.S. Navy began in 2006. The first Australian Romeo also is the 401st MH-60 SEAHAWK helicopter delivered to the U.S. Navy since Sikorsky began deliveries of MH-60S (Sierra) helicopters in 2001. Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., based in Stratford, Conn., is a world leader in helicopter design, manufacture, and service. United Technologies Corp., based in Hartford, Conn., provides a broad range of high technology products and support services to the aerospace and building systems industries.