Minister Gajdoš hands over another two UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters to airmen, to be used on civil contingency and other operations
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- Date: 20.07.2018
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Minister of Defence Peter Gajdoš today handed over two new UH-60M Black Hawk utility helicopters to Slovak airmen during a handover ceremony at the Helicopter Wing Prešov. This brings the total number of the helicopters in service with the SVK Air Force to 4. An additional 5 Black Hawks are scheduled to arrive next year.
SVK Minister of Defence Peter Gajdoš said: “I believe these two helicopters will perform their tasks reliably – both on training and on civil contingency operations in support of our citizens, that is to say, in response to various disaster relief incidents.” He further elaborated on the extra and future equipment with which the two UH-60M Black Hawk utility helicopters are fitted: “These helicopters are equipped with a rescue hoist system, a fast rope insertion extraction system, and an internal auxiliary fuel tank. After equipping them with an aerial firefighting module and a Bambi bucket water drop system and once the crews have been trained for the firefighting role, they can fight fires as Mil Mi-17s do over hardly accessible mountain terrains.” Head of the Defence Department further noted that the SVK Air Force has 6 trained two-man UH-60M Black Hawk crews. “Another 3 crews are undergoing training in the United States right now,” he added.
Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Security Anton Hrnko said: “New air combat assets in the SVK Air Force can markedly upgrade the defence capability of our homeland. I am convinced that once this contract has been fulfilled, the Helicopter Wing Prešov will be one of the best combat units in the Slovak Armed Forces.”
Chief of Defence Lt Gen Daniel Zmeko thanked the MOD for its modernization efforts. “I want to reassure all of you that the new air assets will be used to support the defence of our State and will help our citizens in different civil contingencies,” he said. He then wished Slovak airmen a lot of safe flying hours up in the air. SVK Air Force Commander Maj Gen Ľubomír Svoboda appreciated the fact that the SVK Air Force has now 4 new helicopters at its disposal. “The first two helicopters that were delivered last year have already logged 640 flying hours and I can state we are fully ready to perform assigned operational tasks,” he added.
SVK Minister of Defence Peter Gajdoš said: “I believe these two helicopters will perform their tasks reliably – both on training and on civil contingency operations in support of our citizens, that is to say, in response to various disaster relief incidents.” He further elaborated on the extra and future equipment with which the two UH-60M Black Hawk utility helicopters are fitted: “These helicopters are equipped with a rescue hoist system, a fast rope insertion extraction system, and an internal auxiliary fuel tank. After equipping them with an aerial firefighting module and a Bambi bucket water drop system and once the crews have been trained for the firefighting role, they can fight fires as Mil Mi-17s do over hardly accessible mountain terrains.” Head of the Defence Department further noted that the SVK Air Force has 6 trained two-man UH-60M Black Hawk crews. “Another 3 crews are undergoing training in the United States right now,” he added.
Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Security Anton Hrnko said: “New air combat assets in the SVK Air Force can markedly upgrade the defence capability of our homeland. I am convinced that once this contract has been fulfilled, the Helicopter Wing Prešov will be one of the best combat units in the Slovak Armed Forces.”
Chief of Defence Lt Gen Daniel Zmeko thanked the MOD for its modernization efforts. “I want to reassure all of you that the new air assets will be used to support the defence of our State and will help our citizens in different civil contingencies,” he said. He then wished Slovak airmen a lot of safe flying hours up in the air. SVK Air Force Commander Maj Gen Ľubomír Svoboda appreciated the fact that the SVK Air Force has now 4 new helicopters at its disposal. “The first two helicopters that were delivered last year have already logged 640 flying hours and I can state we are fully ready to perform assigned operational tasks,” he added.
The procurement of the UH-60M Black Hawk multirole helicopters is being implemented through the U.S. Government's Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme. The contract is worth US$261 million. In addition to the price of the helicopters, this also covers the initial two-year Contractor Logistic Support package, training of pilots, aircrews and ground personnel, and the costs associated with the delivery of the helicopters to Slovakia.
