Page 29 - Australian Defence Magazine April 2023

APRIL 2023 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
DEFENCE BUSINESS HEAD LAND CAPABILITY 29
ADM: Why is the Black Hawk such an urgent acquisition, is MRH 90 that much of a basket case?
MAJGEN KING: No, it’s not a basket case. The driver for Black Hawk and the reason why the contract for the first three aircraft was signed in January – with the first three aircraft to be here in June – is because of the need for the special operations capability.
With our helicopters, our tactics, techniques and proce- dures (TTPs) count for a lot. While we’ve done our best to make the layout of the MRH work as a special operations capability, in terms of the mission sets, we’ve just not been able to mature it. Whether that’s for the well-documented aspect of our roping from the aircraft whilst being able to operate the gun safely, or the fact that we’ve been unable
to reach a solution where we can project forward in a C-17 with more than one MRH 90.
Frankly, the TTPs for the Black Hawk’s mission sets are mature, they’re understood, we share them with our coali- tion partners, which is really important. The systems are mature, the role equipment is mature and we can fit three Black Hawks inside a C-17 if we need to project into the region or around Australia as a matter of priority.
All those factors are really important because speed is of the essence in terms of those special operations mission profiles as it relates to Army aviation. They are enabled very much by Black Hawk rather than MRH 90, and as such, in short that’s the reason why we’ve accelerated the acquisi- tion so quickly and why, literally five months after signing a foreign military sales contract with the US government we’ll have the first three Black Hawks here in Australia.
ADM: Under what mechanism are we getting the Black Hawks so quickly? Is the US Army diverting from its own program to enable the sale?
MAJGEN KING: Yes, that’s correct. A lot of work had been done to see what the art of the possible was in 2022. We learned good lessons from our CH-47F Chinooks, which are US Army configuration aligned, with the exception of a ro- tor brake for embarked operations and the kangaroo painted on the side, they are virtually the same aircraft that the US Army operates. A number of
those aircraft were quickly acquired through the same means – originally allo- cated US Army aircraft on the production line being reallocated to Australia and then other aircraft slotted in down the production line for US Army.
“THE DRIVER FOR BLACK HAWK IS BECAUSE OF THE NEED FOR THE SPECIAL OPERATIONS CAPABILITY”
You don’t have a unique
set of requirements such that you have to wait the full length of the production line. You can actually request and kindly, courtesy of the US Government, receive aircraft in that same configuration.
ADM: Can you provide more detail on the delivery profile? MAJGEN KING: The first three will be arriving in Sydney in June and we’re looking to grow to an Initial Operating Capability around the end of 2024 or early 2025, and that focus is on the creation of a Special Operations Aviation Task Unit. From that brick, for want of a better term, we will grow to perform all of the mission profiles we’re required to through the Special Operations Aviation capability. I won’t go into how many aircraft that is but effectively it will see us consolidate that first brick of aircraft into Sydney as an IOC and will allow for almost a full spectrum of capabilities.
LEFT: Army is looking forward to the acquisition of the Hanwha AS9 Redback self-propelled howitzer to supplant the existing M777 towed gun