Lockheed Martin has received a contract from the United States Navy to build eight Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk helicopters for the Spanish Navy.
Designed, built and integrated with advanced mission systems and sensors for anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, the Navy’s future MH-60R (Romeo) aircraft will significantly upgrade and expand the range of maritime capabilities the SH-60B Seahawk fleet currently performs.
“The operational effectiveness of the MH-60R multi-mission helicopter is a direct result of the continued investment by the US Navy, Sikorsky and our partner suppliers in the air vehicle, mission systems and sensors,” said Hamid Salim, vice president of Sikorsky. Maritime Systems.
The Spanish Navy retired the last of 18 Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King helicopters in 2022, following deliveries that began in 1966. Between 1988 and 2001, the Navy acquired 12 SH-60B aircraft and, more recently, purchased eight SH-3 Sea King helicopters. 60F Seahawk retired from the US Navy.
“The new MH-60R will upgrade the mission systems and sensors of the SH-60B fleet, elevating the Spanish Navy to the highest level of anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare capability,” Sikorsky Maritime Systems said. “We look forward to a smooth transition from the SH-60B to the MH-60R.”
Spain’s eight new MH-60R aircraft will join a fleet of 330 aircraft operational around the world with the United States Navy, Australia, Denmark, Saudi Arabia and India. Deliveries of the aircraft to Greece and South Korea will begin in 2024. In May, the US Navy announced that the global MH-60R fleet had surpassed one million flight hours.
“Spain’s confidence in the MH-60R is proof of our shared commitment to national security and the security of our allied nations,” stated Captain William Hargreaves, director of the US Navy’s H-60 Multi-Mission Helicopter Program. The USA. “We are committed to supporting Spain throughout this process, from contract award to delivery, while further consolidating our global partnership. The greater capabilities and new technologies of the MH-60R Seahawk will allow the Spanish Navy to continue having a ready, capable and equipped fleet.”
