On December 4, 2020, American company Lockheed Martin has released the first picture of the MH-60R Naval helicopter for the Indian navy. The MH-60R dubbed Seahawk is a multi-mission helicopter manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft, now part of Lockheed Martin.
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MH-60R Seahawk naval helicopter for Indian navy. (Picture source Lockheed Martin)
The MH-60R is a twin turboshaft engine naval helicopter based on the design of the military helicopter UH-60 Black Hawk. The Seahawk is designed to conduct different types of missions including anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare (ASUW), naval special warfare (NSW) insertion, search and rescue (SAR), combat search and rescue (CSAR), vertical replenishment (VERTREP), and medical evacuation (MEDEVAC).
In April 2019, the U.S. State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to India of twenty-four (24) MH-60R Multi-Mission helicopters for an estimated cost of $2.6 billion. The Government of India has requested to buy twenty-four (24) MH-60R Multi-Mission helicopters, equipped with naval equipment. The request also includes weapons, communication equipment, night vision systems, spare engine containers facilities study, design, and construction, spare and repair parts, support and test equipment, communication equipment, ferry support, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, U.S. Government and contractor engineering, technical and logistics support services, and other related elements of logistical and program support. The total estimated cost is $2.6 billion.
India signed a contract on February 2020 with the U.S to procure 24 Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk maritime multi-mission helicopters for the Indian Navy. In May 2020, Navy Recognition has published news to announce the delivery of the first three Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk multi-mission maritime helicopters to India, later this year.
The MH-60 is used by naval forces in two configurations including the MH-60R and the MH-60S. The MH-60 can be deployed aboard any air-capable frigate, destroyer, cruiser, fast combat support ship, amphibious assault ship, Littoral combat ship, or aircraft carrier. It can conduct 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) missions.
The avionics of MH-60R includes dual controls and instead of the complex array of dials and gauges in Bravo and Foxtrot aircraft, 4 fully integrated 8" x 10" night vision goggle-compatible and sunlight-readable color multi-function displays, all part of glass cockpit produced by Owego Helo Systems division of Lockheed Martin.
Onboard sensors include: AN/AAR-47 Missile Approach Warning System by ATK,[18]Raytheon AN/AAS-44 electro-optical system that integrates FLIR and laser rangefinder, AN/ALE-39 decoy dispenser and AN/ALQ-144 infrared jammer by BAE Systems, AN/ALQ-210 electronic support measures system by Lockheed Martin, AN/APS-147 multi-mode radar/IFF interrogator, which during a mid-life technology insertion project is subsequently replaced by AN/APS-153 Multi-Mode Radar with Automatic Radar Periscope Detection and Discrimination (ARPDD) capability, and both radars were developed by Telephonics, a more advanced AN/AQS-22 advanced airborne low-frequency sonar (ALFS) jointly developed by Raytheon & Thales, AN/ARC-210 voice radio by Rockwell Collins, an advanced airborne fleet data link AN/SRQ-4 Hawklink with radio terminal set AN/ARQ-59 radio terminal, both by L3Harris, and LN-100G dual-embedded global positioning system and inertial navigation system by Northrop Grumman Litton division.
The MH-60R can be armed can be equipped with a range of weapons on the four weapons stations, including Lockheed Martin AGM-114 Hellfire anti-surface missiles. For anti-submarine warfare, the MH-60R can carry up to three ATK mk50 or mk46 active/passive lightweight torpedoes. The side of the helicopter can be fitted with a pintle-mounted weapon station armed with a 7.62mm machine gun.
The MH-60R is powered by two General Electric T700-GE-401C turboshaft engines rated at 1,425kW. It can fly at a maximum speed of 267 km/h with a maximum cruising range of 834 km.
