Norway plans on signing a contract with “American authorities” this summer for the acquisition of six Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk naval helicopters (US Navy)
BELFAST — Norway has said it will acquire six Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk naval helicopters at a total cost of NOK 12 billion ($1.1 billion) to replace some of its NH90 aircraft, months after terminating a contract with NHIndustries for the latter rotorcraft on account of delivery delays.
The Seahawk order was announced Tuesday by Norwegian defense minister Bjørn Arild Gram and will see deliveries take place between 2025 and 2027. Before that can happen, however, a proposal for the acquisition will be put before Norway’s parliament, ahead of a contract with “American authorities” set to be signed in the summer of 2023, according to a Norwegian government statement.
Industrial plans also include the first three aircraft taking over US Navy production slots.
The new helicopters, to be based at Bardufoss Air Station in northern Norway, are to be used by the Norwegian Coast Guard for antisubmarine warfare (ASW) operations, but Oslo still has to decide on a separate acquisition to replace NH90 ASW-capable platforms. That decision is currently “being review by the user and the MoD,” according to a spokesperson for the Norwegian Defence Material Agency.
Nordic counterpart Denmark has operated Seahawks since 2016.
“In order to secure and retain the important helicopter expertise of the crews at Bardufoss, the Air Force will send personnel to Denmark now in advance, to build up technical and operational expertise on maritime helicopter operations on the Seahawk,” noted the Norwegian government statement.
US Navy MH-60R missions include ASW, anti-surface warfare, search and rescue, vertical replenishment, naval fire support, logistics support, medical evacuation and personnel transport.
The twin engine Seahawk can fly at a maximum airspeed of 180 knots, out to a 245 nautical mile range, and has a 23,500-pound maximum gross weight, according to the US Navy.
Norway’s decision to invest in the MH-60R comes after a bitter dispute with NHIndustries over what the government said were delivery delays and excessive maintenance complaints relating to the NH90, culminating in cancellation of a 20-year contract with the manufacturer and a demand for $525 million in compensation. Norway also said at the time of the terminated contract that it would return 13 of the helicopters delivered. In response, NHIndustries pushed back at the time, saying it “consider[ed] this termination to be legally groundless.”
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