An Australian Army pilot from 6th Aviation Regiment walks toward a new UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter at Holsworthy Barracks in Sydney. Credit Sgt. Tristan Kennedy
SYDNEY — Australia, clearly feeling the heat from critics of its decision to ground and divest its fleet of 42 Taipan helicopters, announced a string of support contracts for its Black Hawk, Apache and Chinook helicopters, as well as accelerated delivery of an additional nine Black Hawks this year, giving the country an expected fleet of 12 in 2024.
The nine birds should be delivered in March. The total eventual acquisition of 40 UH-60M Black Hawks is part of what Australia calls LAND 4507-1.
Here are the three contracts announced today by the Australian Defense Ministry.
- $340 million to Lockheed Martin Australia for integrated support and maintenance of Australia’s new UH‑60M Black Hawk utility helicopter fleet.
- $306 million to Boeing Defence Australia for a seven-year Initial Support Contract for the Apache helicopter for maintenance, engineering, training and logistics services.
- A $184 million contract awarded to Boeing Defence Australia to extend the Chinook Integrated Support Services Contract to August 2028.
Altogether, that’s $830 million AUD ($541 million USD) in helo support. The government, as usual, stressed the number of jobs each contract would help create and listed their locations. Lockheed Martin Australia will employ more than 200 aircraft maintenance engineers, logisticians, and skilled aviation technical jobs over the next five years in Holsworthy, Oakey and Brisbane.
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In its release about the Black Hawk deal, Lockheed Martin Australia said it has established a UH-60M Black Hawk Technical Assistance Agreement with the US State Department “to accelerate the transfer of technical data and technology to Australian industry.”
For the Boeing Apache contract, more than 230 new roles will be created in Queensland to keep the 29 Apaches flying, Boeing said in its release. Some 150 jobs will be in Townsville, with another 50 in Brisbane and 30 in Oakey. The Australian Apaches should arrive next year and are scheduled to achieve Initial Operational Capability in late 2026.
On top of those deals, Australia plans to lease five H135 Juno training helicopters from the United Kingdom “to support essential training requirements for Army aircrews” for five years.
Australia already owns 15 EC135 helicopters that are based at Nowra, New South Wales, to provide initial rotary wing training. In the face of criticism from the opposition and some experts that the Taipan divestment left Australia without enough helicopters for civil response for fires and floods, the government notes that the 135s “can perform a variety of roles, including personnel and equipment transport and Defence Assistance to the Civil Community.” The additional helos will be paid for from existing funds, the government indicated.
“When the tough but necessary decision was made last year to expedite the withdrawal of the MRH-90s [Taipans] from service, it meant that we needed to look at all options when it came to filling the capability gap and the training which our servicemen and women need,” Defense Minister Richard Marles said in a statement. “We have been working with the United States and United Kingdom on ways in which we can bridge this gap, and their support and willingness with the acceleration of the Black Hawks and leasing of training helicopters will have a significant impact.”
