In a first, the Air National Guard recently tested how its new rescue helicopter would survive against attacks from enemy fighter aircraft to prepare for a potential war in the Pacific.
combat rescue helicopter
Airmen from the 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base, Italy, flew their last mission in an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter on Dec. 18, becoming the latest unit across the Air Force to transition to the new HH-60W Jolly Green II chopper.
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The Air Force will consider the Army’s freshly-chosen Bell V-280 tiltrotor as a possible combat search and rescue platform for work in contested airspace, but will also look at other technical options, including the CV-22 as an interim solution, Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q., ...
At least 20 new airplane programs—including a handful that are variants—are in some stage of planning or development. If sustained, this airplane-building campaign will lower the average age of the fleet, increase its size, and enhance its ability to be upgraded rapidly.
While the Air Force is keeping a seemingly optimistic outlook about the future of its MH-139 Grey Wolf fleet, despite problems receiving FAA certification, another of the service’s helicopter programs is being prematurely curtailed—and officials are already considering what might come next.
The Air Force is assessing the impact of a judge’s ruling contesting the award of an almost $1 billion contract for HH-60W Jolly Green II upgrades to determine if the service can delay some upgrades or not do some of them at all. The new ...
The Air Force’s next combat rescue helicopter, the HH-60W Jolly Green II, concluded 23 months of developmental testing on April 13. Since its first flight in May 2019, a joint Air Force and Sikorsky team has flown more than 1,100 test hours in six aircraft, ...
Sikorsky will finish its to-do list of developmental flight testing requirements for the Air Force’s new fleet of combat search-and-rescue helicopters in the next month or so, and is gearing up to deliver one chopper per month starting this summer, company officials told reporters Feb. ...
The Air Force's major acquisition programs collectively increased in cost $3.7 billion in the first quarter of fiscal year 2020, according the Pentagon's latest Selected Acquisition Reports. Most of the increases were due to buying more units and services. The F-15 Eagle Passive Active Warning ...
The Air Force’s new combat rescue helicopter recently faced extreme temperatures and winds to prove the HH-60W Jolly Green II can be sustainable in any environment. The helicopter on April 2 finished a month-long test process at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., in which it ...
Flight testing of top-priority programs is ramping back up this week at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., and other locations around the Air Force, Air Force Materiel Command chief Gen. Arnold Bunch Jr. said. New procedures are balancing urgent operational needs with the safety of ...