The Royal Australian Navy’s MH-60R Seahawk fleet has reached ten years of operational service and surpassed over 50,000 flight hours.
Sikorsky Australia, a Lockheed Martin Australia company, has sustained the Royal Australian Navy’s Seahawks, while steadily growing the rotary-wing industrial base, building a 200-strong workforce including 20 apprentices, a regional supply chain of 60 suppliers, and established a sustainment and logistics facility at Albatross Aviation Technology Park, Nowra.
In line with the new sustainment contract and Royal Australian Navy’s acquisition of 13 additional MH-60R aircraft, the workforce is expected to grow to around 300 personnel over the next five years.
“This milestone is a testament of the joint team’s sustained focus to deliver with excellence for the MH-60R Seahawk fleet, a world-class platform that brings unmatched anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare capabilities to Australia and navies globally.”
Sikorsky Australia’s General Manager Cliff Kyle reflected, “The milestone is significant and exemplifies the longstanding and successful partnership between the Royal Australian Navy and Sikorsky Australia.” “It is important to reflect on our journey. From humble beginnings, our modest team provided sustainment support utilising Fleet Air Arm Squadron hangars prior to our facility being constructed. Our maintainers and logisticians deployed to the US to train and operate alongside 725 Squadron to absorb the global expertise and transfer this technical knowledge to Australia.” “In partnership with the Royal Australian Navy, our workforce has delivered 60 Planned Maintenance Interval servicings on the Navy’s fleet of Seahawks at our Nowra facility, including the first-ever deep maintenance activity on a US Navy MH-60R Seahawk.”
Sikorsky Australia’s sustainment program for the Seahawk fleet underpins unmatched readiness and availability for the Royal Australian Navy in executing their critical missions.
Kyle added, “We share a common approach to the enterprise. Focussing on our job, to execute sustainment services to the highest standard for the Royal Australian Navy Fleet Air Arm, ensures aircraft can deploy and operate wherever they are needed. The Sikorsky Australia team are dedicated to the mission and feel privileged to work hand-in-hand with the Royal Australian Navy on sustaining the Seahawks.”
MH-60R Seahawks By the Numbers:
- More than 345 MH-60R Seahawks are in operation worldwide.
- More than 160 Seahawk naval helicopters of all types are operational in the Indo-Pacific region.
- The Sikorsky production line is actively fulfilling MH-60R aircraft orders for South Korea (12), Greece (7), India (24) and Australia (13). Deliveries will bring a substantial increase to regional and global maritime security.
- The MH-60R Seahawk is the most reliable, cost-effective aircraft with Sikorsky enabling 95-98 percent aircraft availability rate for the US Navy.
- The global fleet of MH-60R helicopters achieved 1 million fleet flight hours in 2023.
Image courtesy of LMA: (L-R) CAPT Todd Glynn RAN, Commodore Anthony Savage, Director General Navy Aviation, Aircrew Training and Commons Branch, Kendell Kuczma, General Manager Rotary & Mission Systems Lockheed Martin Australia, Mr. John Downton OAM, navy artist, and Cliff Kyle, General Manager Sikorsky Australia marking the MH-60R Seahawk fleet’s ten years of operational service and surpassing over 50,000 flight hours, Sikorsky Australia’s facilities, Nowra.
