UH 60M BLACK HAWK gears up for first flight

The US Army and Sikorsky Aircraft are preparing for the first flight of the upgraded UH-60M BLACK HAWK helicopter, designed to replace the UH-60L as the standard configuration for all new Army BLACK HAWK production in 2007.

The US Army's aviation modernisation plan calls for improvements to the UH-60 BLACK HAWK that will position it as the service's primary utility helicopter for decades to come. The Army plans to upgrade 1,200 existing UH-60A and UH-60L aircraft and purchase 300 new production BLACK HAWKs that together will provide greater capabilities, a larger payload and lower maintenance costs than current UH-60A and UH-60L models. The overhaul is expected to span 25 years, with the first aircraft slated to fly this fall.

"The upgrade is of great long-term importance to both the US Army and Sikorsky Aircraft. What has been the foundation of our company will continue to form a significant base for the next 25 years," said company President Dean Borgman.

There are presently four BLACK HAWKs in the development programme, a UH-60A, UH-60L, and a UH-60Q medevac variant as well as a new production UH-60M. After completion of the first four aircraft, work on the low rate initial production UH-60M aircraft will begin in 2004 and will eventually increase to a maximum of 90 existing aircraft inducted per year by 2012.

The recapitalised aircraft will offer an additional 20 years of service life as well as numerous performance improvements. The new UH-60M composite spar wide-chord blade will provide 500 pounds more lift than the current UH-60L blade. Additionally, the new General Electric T700-GE-701D engine currently under development by the Army will add 3% more shaft horsepower, allowing 400 to 500 pounds of additional payload. The UH-60M will feature a new Rockwell Collins glass cockpit with a narrower instrument panel to improve chin window visibility, and will be fitted with a new cabin and transition section that uses high-speed machine frames, reducing the cost and complexity of the cabin.

The MH-60M programme for the US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) will closely follow that of the UH-60M conversion, offering a high degree of structural and dynamic commonality including use of same main gearbox and active vibration control. One major difference will be the use of composite materials for the SOCOM MH-60M aircraft.

Dual digital flight controls and fully-coupled flight director to reduce pilot workload; altitude- and hover-hold will help avoid "white-out" and "brown-out" mishaps; Active vibration control to reduce pilot fatigue encountered in lengthy missions; On-board diagnostics to isolate problems and allow precise system diagnosis, and; Improved Hover Infrared Suppression System to provide superior battlefield protection from infrared weapons.

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