Sikorsky Wins $8.5M Contract for H-60 Helicopters from US DoD

The U.S. Army and Navy today signed an $8.5 billion contract with Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. to buy a baseline quantity of 653 Black Hawk and Seahawk helicopters through December 2017. The five-year contract will yield significant savings for the U.S. Government compared with purchasing the same quantity across five separate annual agreements. The five-year agreement also allows the Army and Navy to order as many as 263 more aircraft within the same contractual terms. If exercised, the optional purchases could push the contract value as high as $11.7 billion. Actual production quantities will be determined year-by-year over the life of the program based on funding allocations set by Congress and Pentagon acquisition priorities. "By buying a five-year quantity of four helicopter models in a single joint-service purchase, the two services have enabled Sikorsky and our suppliers to aggressively control our long- term costs," said John Palumbo, Sikorsky's Vice President for Black Hawk aircraft production. "Furthermore, by ordering a similar number of aircraft year-over-year, the Army and Navy have ensured that we can stabilize our supply base over the same period of time." Designated Multi-Year 8 -- for the eighth multi-year order of H-60 helicopters since fiscal year 1982 -- today's formal signing ends more than three years of planning, including six months of negotiation. The base contract includes UH-60M utility and HH-60M MEDEVAC helicopters for the U.S. Army, and MH-60R and MH-60S helicopters for the U.S. Navy.