Australia will acquire a fleet of 40 Sikorsky UH-60M Blackhawk helicopters, under a foreign military sale with the United States worth AU$2.85 billion, to replace Australia’s fleet of MRH-90 Taipan helicopters as part of LAND 4507 Phase 1.
The Black Hawk has a maximum payload capacity of over four tonnes or 11 fully equipped infantry soldiers along with 1.2 tonnes of cargo internally, while accommodating a crew of three.
Australia's fleet of Black Hawks will be capable of conducting operations including air assault, medical evacuation, combat search and rescue, command and control, and VIP transport providing the Australian Army a flexible, survivable, and proven platform.
The UH-60M leverages a suite of advanced technologies, enhancing the aircraft’s situational awareness, survivability, maintenance footprint, operational performance, and interoperability with a host of existing and planned Army platforms to deliver a more reliable aircraft.
Switching to Black Hawks is expected to save the Commonwealth government AU$2.5 billion, with acquisition and sustainment costs estimated to total AU$7 billion between 2022–37.
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