Australian Army soldiers and aviators conduct helicopter insertion and extraction training as part of UH-60M Black Hawk introduction into service activities in September 2024. (CPL Robert Whitmore/Commonwealth of Australia)
The Australian Army is subjecting its new Sikorsky UH-60M helicopters to a variety of training and testing activities in support of achieving initial operational capability (IOC), the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) has said.
“The [Australian] Army is rapidly bringing its fleet of UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters into service, with the aircraft and crew flying more than 1,400 hours in support of introduction into service activities since the aircraft's arrival in 2023,” the DoD said in a press statement on 29 October.
“The fleet is on track to achieve an IOC in the coming months,” the DoD added.
The army has inducted 10 out of 40 contracted UH-60Ms at this time. Based on publicly available information, Janes assesses that Australia received the 10 helicopters between July 2023 and August 2024. The DoD said two additional UH-60Ms are scheduled for delivery in November 2024.
According to the DoD, army soldiers and aviators are training on the new helicopters. The training programme includes “platform training, special operations training activities, and first-of-class flight trials”, the DoD said.
The testing and evaluation of the helicopter in November will include counter-terrorism training across the greater Sydney region, according to the DoD.
Major General Stephen Jobson, head of Army Aviation Command, said the ongoing training is an important milestone for the aviation capability. “This specialised, complex training will ensure our soldiers and aviators are able to rapidly respond to domestic emergencies and potential security threats,” he said.
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