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US Army HH-60Ms (click to view full) In July 2012, the US military signed another huge contract with Sikorsky. With production of the Army’s HH/UH-60M, and the Navy’s MH-60S and MH-60R helicopters, all in full swing, there’s no question about the need for future orders. In that environment, multi-year contracts allow efficiencies in purchasing, and security of staffing, throughout Sikorsky’s supply chain. These new helicopter types are also available to Foreign Military Sales class customers, under the American contract’s advantageous pricing and terms. The UH-60M, MH-60S and MH-60R models have already inked export deals, and official requests indicate that more deals are in the pipeline. The new multi-year 2013-2017 contract could be worth up to $11.7 billion, and follows a 5-year, multi-service “MYP-VII” contract in December 2007. Like its predecessor, it covers UH-60M Black Hawk troop transport and light cargo helicopters, Army HH-60M SAR (Search And Rescue) / MEDEVAC (MEDical EVACuation) helicopters, and the US Navy’s MH-60S and MH-60R Seahawk helicopters. MYP-VIII: Contract in Context USN Heli Plan (click to view full) The US Army plans to order 956 UH-60M and 419 MEDEVAC HH-60M Black Hawks through 2026, a total of 1,375 H-60M models. By then, the US Army’s total […]

Americas Sikorsky Aircraft won a $35 million delivery order for the procurement of 57 actuator assemblies, 50 shut-off valves, six isolation valves, 57 pressure switches, seven thermal resistors, 28 prime pumps, 29 forward fairings, 13 aircraft skins, 15 fairings, 14 deicer boots, 10 bypass doors, 45 engines, 15 electrical harnesses, 10 center units, eight lowers, five exhaust blowers, six flow control valves, 50 mechanical actuators, 95 spring holders, eight centrifugal fans, and 28 particle separators in support of the CH-53K aircrafts. All work will be performed in Stratford, Connecticut. Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity. Raytheon won a $20 million delivery order, which order provides engineering, management, technical, and acquisition support for the development of software corrections to address the capability defect packages for the V-22 avionics and flight control systems. Work will be performed in Indianapolis, Indiana, and is expected to be completed by December 2026. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Europe The Netherlands plans to buy two support vessels that will act as sidekicks to its air-defense frigates, packing additional missiles to defeat swarms of anti-ship missiles and drones, for an investment in the […]

Americas GE Aviation Systems won a $63 million deal for KC-135 aircraft integrated data acquisition recorder systems. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. The KC-135 Stratotanker provides the core aerial refueling capability for the United States Air Force and has excelled in this role for more than 60 years. This unique asset enhances the Air Force’s capability to accomplish its primary mission of global reach. It also provides aerial refueling support to Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and allied nation aircraft. The KC-135 is also capable of transporting litter and ambulatory patients using patient support pallets during aeromedical evacuations. The United States is sending a “small number” of additional troops to the Middle East in response to rising tensions in the region, the Pentagon said Monday, giving few further details. The announcement comes as fears of a broader regional war grow, with Israel striking hundreds of targets in Lebanon in what is by far the deadliest cross-border escalation in nearly a year of violence between Israel and Hezbollah. Middle East & Africa Israeli air strikes on Lebanon killed nearly 500 people on Monday, including 35 children, the health ministry said, marking the deadliest day […]

Americas Sikorsky won a $72 million delivery order for the procurement of 98 rotary blades in support of the CH-53 K aircrafts. The delivery order does not include an option period. All work will be performed in Stratford, Connecticut. Work is expected to be completed by December 2028. This announcement involves Foreign Military Sales (FMS) from Israel. Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity. Northrop Grumman has announced a significant stride in the flight-testing and production of the US Air Force’s futuristic B-21 Raider. Since its unveiling in December 2022, the company reports that the stealth bomber now undergoes up to two test flights per week, demonstrating its commitment to making the warplane operational as soon as possible. Northrop also currently possesses three Raiders in various configurations, of which two are for ground testing and one for flight trials. Middle East & Africa US Africa Command confirmed that a small contingent of American personnel remains in Chad, supporting counterterrorism missions.The United States has resumed discussions regarding its military presence in Chad, reflecting a broader trend of African nations reassessing their security relationships with the US In recent weeks, senior officials from the State and Defense departments […]

RAAF C-130J-30, flares (click to view full) The C-130 Hercules remains one of the longest-running aerospace manufacturing programs of all time. Since 1956, over 40 models and variants have served as the tactical airlift backbone for over 50 nations. The C-130J looks similar, but the number of changes almost makes it a new aircraft. Those changes also created issues; the program has been the focus of a great deal of controversy in America – and even of a full program restructuring in 2006. Some early concerns from critics were put to rest when the C-130J demonstrated in-theater performance on the front lines that was a major improvement over its C-130E/H predecessors. A valid follow-on question might be: does it break the bottleneck limitations that have hobbled a number of multi-billion dollar US Army vehicle development programs? C-130J customers now include Australia, Britain, Canada, Denmark, India, Israel, Iraq, Italy, Kuwait, Norway, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Tunisia, and the United States. American C-130J purchases are taking place under both annual budgets and supplemental wartime funding, in order to replace tactical transport and special forces fleets that are flying old aircraft and in dire need of major repairs. This DID FOCUS […]

Americas Rockwell Collin won a $46 million modification to provide expanded risk reduction non-recurring engineering efforts to further address size, weight, and power-cooling of the airborne very low frequency (VLF) design considerations for the integration of the VLF transmit system into a C-130 aircraft. Work will take place in Richardson, Texas, and is expected to be completed in September 2026. Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Lockheed Martin won a $30 million deal to procure AEGIS Linear Processing Systems in support of Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers. Work will be performed in Moorestown, New Jersey (80%); and Clearwater, Florida (20%), and is expected to be completed by June 2027. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity. Middle East & Africa The Israeli military says about 150 rockets, missiles and other projectiles have been fired at its territory overnight and on Sunday. It says most of the strikes were launched by Hezbollah in Lebanon. They reached further into Israel than before, including close to the port city of Haifa, where at least three people were wounded. The Israeli army also said projectiles launched from Iraq had been brought down. Hundreds of thousands of people […]