The State Department approved two Foreign Military Sales (FMS) requests worth a total of $7 billion to Saudi Arabia for CH-47F Chinook Cargo Helicopters and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for Apache AH-64E Helicopters.
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) notified Congress of the potential sales on Dec. 7.
Photo: Boeing
Saudi Arabia requested $3.51 billion in 48 CH-47F Chinook Cargo Helicopters, 112 T55-GA-714A engines (96 installed and 16 spares), 116 Embedded Global Positioning System (GPS) Inertial Navigation Systems (EGI) (96 installed and 20 spares), 58 AN/AAR-57 Common Missile Warning Systems (CMWS) (48 installed and 10 spares), and 48 M240H 7.62mm Machine Guns with spare parts.
This sale also comprises numerous pieces of non-Major Defense Equipment (MDE). This includes M134D Mini-Guns or equivalent type guns with support equipment and training; Aircraft Survivability Equipment (AN/APR- 39A(V) l/4, AN/AVR-2B, AN/ARC-231, AN/ARC-201D, AN/APX-123A, ARN-147 VOR/ILS, ARN-153 TACAN, APN-209, IDM-401 Improved Data Modem, and AN/ARC-220); Infrared Signature Suppression System (IRSS); Fast Rope Insertion Extraction System (FRIES); Extended Range Fuel System (ERPS); Ballistic Armor Protection System; facilities; air worthiness support; spares and repair parts; communications equipment; personnel training and training equipment; site surveys; tool and test equipment; Ground Support Equipment (GSE); repair and return; publications and technical documentation; Quality Assurance Team (QAT); U.S. government and contractor engineering, technical and logistics support services; and other logistics and program support services.
This sale’s primary contractors are Boeing [BA] and Honeywell [HON].
Saudi Arabia will use this equipment to improve its heavy lift capability and strengthen its homeland defense and deter regional threats. DSCA also highlighted the sale will increase Royal Saudi Land Forces Aviation Command’s (RSLFAC) interoperability with U.S. forces and advance the country’s development of a heavy lift helicopter capability.
Implementation of the sale would require up to 60 U.S. government and contractor representatives to travel to Saudi Arabia for up to 60 months for equipment de-processing, field system checkout, training, and technical logistics support.
The UAE sale consists of $3.5 billion in 28 AH-64E Remanufactured Apache Attack Helicopters and nine new AH-64E Apache Attack Helicopters.
Photo: U.S. Army
Other MDE in the sale includes 76 T700-GE-701D Engines (56 remanufactured, 18 new, and two spares); 39 AN/ASQ-170 Modernized Target Acquisition and Designation Sight/AN/AAR-11 Modernized Pilot Night Vision Sensors (28 remanufactured, nine new, and two spares); 32 remanufactured AN/APR-48B Modernized – Radar Frequency Interferometers; 46 AAR-57 Common Missile Warning Systems (31 remanufactured, nine new, and six spares); 88 Embedded Global Positioning Systems with Inertial Navigation (72 new and 16 spares); 44 Manned-Unmanned Teaming-International (MUMTi) systems (28 remanufactured, nine new, and seven spares); and 15 new MUMTi System Upper Receivers.
The UAE sale also entails associated equipment comprising training devices; helmets; simulators; generators; transportation; wheeled vehicles and organization equipment; spare and repair parts; support equipment; tools and test equipment; technical data and publications; personnel training and training equipment; and U.S. government and contractor engineering, technical, and logistics support services.
This sale’s main contractors are Boeing and Lockheed Martin [LMT]. DSCA noted offsets are a requirement of doing business in the UAE but that they will be negotiated director between the original equipment manufacturers and the UAE government, with details unknown at the time.
The UAE will use this equipment to strengthen homeland defense and improve its ability to meet current and future threats, the agency said.