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Halfway point for Australia's U.S. helicopter procurement

by Richard Tomkins Patuxent River, Md. (UPI) Jun 11, 2015 UPI

The U.S. Navy has reached the halfway point in supplying the Royal Australian Navy with 24 MH-60R Seahawk helicopters.

The latest shipment of two MH-60R Seahawks, obtained by Australia through a U.S. Foreign Military Sales agreement, were recently delivered to Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland and then shipped to Australia aboard a Royal Australian Air Force C-17.

"As they come off the production line, the Australians have picked them up two at a time," said Cmdr. Scott Stringer, HX-21 MH-60 government flight test director. "This is a multi-year plan that should carry into mid-2016."

Later this year, the U.S. Navy's Air Test and Evaluation Squadron, HX-21, and the Royal Australian Navy's squadron 725 are scheduled to test modifications on the MH-60Rs, including the addition of an instrument landing system and a crash-survivable data recorder.

The modifications are the result of specific requirements for the helicopters requested by Australia.

The mission of HX-21 is to conduct developmental flight test and evaluation of rotary-wing and tilt-rotor aircraft in support of all United States Navy and United States Marine Corps training, operational combat and operational combat support missions.

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