TSAMTO, July 7. The US Department of Defense announced the signing of the US Navy Aviation Systems Command with Lockheed Martin Corp. a contract for the supply of three MH-60R helicopters for the country's Navy.
The cost of the agreement providing for the delivery of the MH-60R as an "equivalent replacement" (replacement-in-kind) is $ 129 million. The work will be performed at the enterprises in Ovego (pcs.New York, 52%), Stradford (pcs.Connecticut, 40%), Three (Alabama, 8%) and are expected to be completed in May 2025.
Information about which additional MH-60R helicopters are being purchased to replace has not yet been disclosed. It is known about several incidents with machines of this type during the performance of tasks at sea. In particular, in April 2017, one of the helicopters crashed after taking off from the Arleigh Burke-class DDG-105 Dewey destroyer, and in October 2019, an accident occurred on the deck of the CVN-76 Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier. In January 2020, the MH-60S of the Blue Ridge Staff Ship (LCC 19) was lost in the Philippine Sea.
The MH-60R is designed to perform various tasks, including anti-submarine and anti-ship warfare, search and rescue operations, supply and medical evacuation.
The helicopter with a maximum take-off weight of 10682 kg, a length of 19.76 m and a height of 5.1 m is equipped with two T700-GE-401C engines, develops a maximum speed of 267 km / h. The flight duration is 3.3 hours, the crew is three people. The MH-60R can carry up to 8 Hellfire ATGM on elongated pylons located on the sides of the hull.
According to Shephard Defense Insight, the US Navy has 275 MH-60S and 278 MH-60R helicopters in service.
