The new aircraft will add a third ‘Romeo’ squadron with an unparalleled capability to the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) Fleet Air Arm.
Lockheed Martin has been awarded a firm-fixed-price contract by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) for 12 additional Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk helicopters. The new helicopters will be procured via the U.S. Government’s Foreign Military Sales agreement. The new aircraft will add a third ‘Romeo’ squadron with an unparalleled capability to the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) Fleet Air Arm. Sikorsky is a Lockheed Martin company.
“The ‘Romeo’ Seahawk helicopter instills confidence in navies worldwide for its high operational availability in the harsh maritime environment, and for the fully integrated mission systems and sensors that quickly generate a complete picture of the surface and subsurface domains,” said Hamid Salim, vice president, Sikorsky Maritime & Mission Systems. “We thank the RAN for showing confidence in the broad mission flexibility of this proven multi-role helicopter. Ongoing and planned upgrades to the MH-60R through partnership with the U.S. Navy, RAN, other international partners and industry will ensure the aircraft’s reliability and mission effectiveness against emerging threats for decades to come,”he further added.
The newly ordered helicopters are part of the Australian Government’s Project SEA 9100 Phase 1 (Improved Embarked Logistics Support Helicopter Capability). The 12 new MH-60R aircraft will create a common fleet of maritime helicopters supporting all of the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN) air-capable platforms.
“Built upon a decade of partnership with the United States Navy and Lockheed Martin, the MH-60R ‘Romeo’ multi-mission helicopter provides the Royal Australian Navy with an unparalleled maritime aviation platform,” said Rear Adm. Peter Quinn, Head Navy Capability for the Royal Australian Navy. “The versatility of the MH-60R to conduct a wide range of missions combined with the world-class support provided by our partners, was a significant factor in the decision by the RAN to make an additional investment in MH-60R under the SEA 9100 Phase 1 program,” he further added.
Lockheed Martin has plans to deliver all 12 MH-60R helicopters to the Australian Royal Navy between mid-2025 and mid-2026. Sikorsky Aircraft Australia Limited in Nowra, New South Wales, Australia currently has the responsibility of providing depot-level maintenance, supply support and logistics support for Australia’s MH-60R helicopter fleet.
“The additional 12 MH-60R SEAHAWK aircraft is a testament to the Royal Australian Navy’s commitment to providing their service men and women the right aircraft for their mission needs,” said Capt. Todd Evans, U.S. Navy H-60 multi-mission helicopters program manager. “This effort continues the long-standing partnership between the United States Navy and the Royal Australian Navy,” he further added.
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The Australian Royal Navy (RAN) was the first international navy to select the MH-60R helicopter to support defence activities. The RAN already acquired 24 aircraft from 2013 to 2016. The Fleet Air Arm’s 725 and 816 squadrons based at Nowra have accumulated more than 30,000 flight hours embarked on frigates, destroyers and supply ships.
