The US military is developing a large-scale upgrade plan for the Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter Squadron to extend the life and maintain the capability of this main combat helicopter line after 2050.
On December 19, the agency issued a Request for Information (RFI) to assess the feasibility of establishing a commercial production line for the maintenance and upgrading of existing NH-60M aircraft over the years.
RFI is a non-linear form of offering, encouraging the industry to come up with ideas for a shopping project under consideration. Based on RFI's results, the government can conduct an Official Proposal Request, which will include official requirements and invite competitive bidding proposals.
The Black Hawk helicopter Moder ownership program is currently overseen by the military's Office of the Unmanned Aerial Project (UHPO).
According to the draft describing the work accompanying RFI, UHPO is looking for the capacity to upgrade 12 to 24 UH-60M aircraft per year, and may expand to an unknown number of HH-60M aircraft, a rescue variation of Black Hawk.
According to the proposed repair process, each helicopter will be completely dismantled for detailed inspection. The body parts that are damaged, degraded or show signs of material fatigue will be repaired or replaced. The problem of erosion will also be thoroughly handled, along with preventive measures to prolong the exploitation life cycle.
"The short job description was drafted to highlight the tasks we consider the most essential," said Colonel Ryan Nesrsta, commander of the UHPO.
While there are opportunities for innovation in manufacturing, repair and supply chain management, this effort assumes that solution development, integration and testing are complete, he noted.
The US military also said it is ready to expand the program to serve domestic military units and civil agencies that are exploiting the H-60, as well as Black Hawk customers abroad. The force is currently operating about 2,300 Black Hawk helicopters and is negotiating with Sikorsky on an 11th multi-year manufacturing contract, extending the purchase of a new UH-60M until 2032. The current multi-year contract No. 10 guarantees the handover of new aircraft until 2026.
Although the US military has signed a separate contract with Bell to develop the MV75 wing-facing helicopter, which was once considered the successor to Black Hawk, it is now expected that the two types of helicopters will operate in parallel. The first UH-60M was adopted in 2006, meaning a large part of the fleet currently needs to be renovated to achieve the goal of maintaining operations after 2050.
In addition to extending its life, the US military also aims to modernize the UH-60M with new capabilities to increase survival and combat effectiveness. A notable priority is the integration of the ability to deploy launch effects while flying, allowing helicopters to launch small and medium-sized drones for reconnaissance, monitoring or attack, helping to reach targets from a safe distance from ground-based air defense threats. Several tests have been conducted, using a modified Black Hawk helicopter to deploy Anduril's Altius drone.
