India clears purchase of MH60R through U.S. Foreign Military Sales program

After news reports broke that India cleared the purchase of 24 Sikorsky MH-60R naval multirole helicopters through the U.S. Foreign Military Sales program, Lockheed Martin officials in Owego responded.

In a statement received on Wednesday, Dan Spoor, vice president, Sikorsky Maritime and Mission Systems stated, “We are very pleased to learn that India is moving forward with the purchase of 24 MH-60R multi-mission helicopters. We stand behind the U.S. Navy and look forward to having the Indian Navy become the fourth international country, joining Australia, Denmark and Saudi Arabia, to operate the MH-60R Romeo, the most advanced maritime helicopter in the world.”

He added, “This platform will provide the Indian Navy with the capability to identify, engage, and defeat maritime security threats along with the ability to perform secondary missions including vertical replenishment and search and rescue.”

Officials from Lockheed were not able to comment much further, but noted that they will release more information once a contract is received to authorize the start of aircraft production.

According to Defense News, accessible at defensenews.com, the acquisition, which is worth about $2.12 billion, was approved by India’s top defense clearance body, the Cabinet Committee on Security, which is headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The clearance also came ahead of a two-day visit to India by U.S. President Donald Trump on Feb. 24.

The MoD official, according to Defense News, said a formal government-to-government contract for the MH-60R helicopters will be signed once cost negotiations are finalized. No timeline has been set, but delivery will take place three years after the contract is inked.

Defense News also detailed that the recently approved deal for 24 MH-60Rs includes a weapons package. The helicopters are to be armed with multi-mode radar, Hellfire missiles, Mark 54 torpedoes, and precision-kill rockets.

They further explained that the Navy plans to use the helicopters for its front-line warships to replace its outdated British Sea King Mark 42 helicopters. They will also be used in limited intelligence gathering roles, for surveillance missions, and in search and rescue efforts. The helicopters are also expected to have the capability for conducting amphibious assault and anti-submarine warfare missions.

The Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk multi-mission helicopter replaced the SH-60B and SH-60F helicopters in the U.S. Navy’s fleet and combines the capabilities of these aircraft. The MH-60R is also referred to as ‘Romeo’.

The helicopter is equipped for a range of missions including anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare (ASuW), search-and-rescue (SAR), naval gunfire support (NGFS), surveillance, communications relay, logistics support, and personnel transfer and vertical replenishment (VERTREP).

The helicopter is fitted with a 2,721.55kg (6,000lb) cargo hook for vertical replenishment missions. Lockheed Martin in Owego is the mission systems integrator.