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Australian & New Zealand Military Aircraft Serials & History

RAN N48 Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk

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  Seahawk lands on HMAS Perth

     
 

MH-60R Seahawk Image Gallery

  
     
  The Australian Government announced the approval of the acquisition of 24 MH-60R Seahawk ‘Romeo’ naval combat helicopters at a cost of over $3 billion on 16 June 2011.

At the same time, Defence signed a Letter of Agreement for the acquisition with the United States Government and the first two helicopters are due to arrive in mid-2014 for testing and evaluation. Operations are expected to commence in mid-2015.

The new helicopters will replace the Navy’s combat helicopter capability provided by 16 Seahawk S-70B-2 helicopters and will also provide the air to surface strike capability which was to have been provided by the cancelled Super Seasprite program. This follows a 15-month competitive acquisition process involving the Sikorsky-Lockheed Martin built MH-60R and the NATO Helicopter Industries NH90 NFH assembled by Australian Aerospace.

The helicopters are largely military off-the-shelf built by Sikorsky and Lockheed Martin and will be purchased through the Foreign Military Sales process from the US Navy.

Acquisition of 24 ‘Romeos’ under Project AIR 9000 Phase 8 is intended to give the RAN the capacity to provide at least eight warships with a combat helicopter at the same time, including Anzac Class Frigates and the new Hobart Class Air Warfare Destroyers.

The remainder will be based at Albatross in Nowra, New South Wales, and will be in various stages of the regular maintenance and training cycle.

The MH-60R will be equipped with combat systems designed to employ Hellfire air-to-surface missile and the Mark 54 anti-submarine torpedo.

The first two MH-60R helicopters were formally accepted into service by NUSQN725 at Jacksonville in Florida on January 24. 

  
     
 

ADF.Serial

Code

Production
 Number

 Lot
Number		 Bu
Number

History

N48-001

901 1 10 168814 26/06/2013. Initial test flight at Sikorsky's production facility in Stratford, Connecticut, USA.
The helicopter successfully passed a range of tests during the 1 hour and 20 minute sortie including controllability, engine performance, vibration analysis and navigation.
A second sortie later that day completed the 'Contractor Flight Acceptance' phase.
The helicopter was then fitted with its mission systems and sensors at Lockheed Martin's facility in Owego, New York.
10/12/2013 Delivered.
24/01/2014 Accepted into service by NUSQN725 at Jacksonville in Florida
27/04/2015 at 725 Sq Nowra..

Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk N48-001

N48-002

902 2 10 168815 10/12/2013 Delivered.
24/01/2014 Accepted into service by NUSQN725 at Jacksonville in Florida.
Launched Hellfire Missle
Noted at Nowra 22/08/17 as Gauntlet 02 of 725 Sqn.

Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk N48-002  

N48-003

903 3 10 168816 24/02/2014 Flown and delivered to be equipped with Radar/electronics etc
As Gauntlet 03 of NUSQN 725 it became the first Australian MH-60R to fire a Mk.54 torpedo.
First MH-60R to be embarked.
xx/02/2015 Embarked HMAS Perth.

Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk N48-003

N48-004

904 4 10 168817 24/02/2014 Flown and delivered to be equipped with Radar/electronics etc
Noted as Gauntlet 04 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.

 Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk N48-004

N48-005

905 5 11 168818 Noted as Gauntlet 05 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.
On Static Display at Avalon 2015.
Flying display at Avalon 2017 as Tiger 05 of 816 Sqn.

 Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk N48-005

N48-006

906 6 11 168819 Noted as Gauntlet 06 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.

N48-007

907 7 11 168820 Noted as Gauntlet 07 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.

Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk N48-007

N48-008

908 8 11 168821 Noted as Gauntlet 08 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.
Participant in Exercise Joint Warrior 2018 in UK

Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk N48-008

N48-009

909 9 11 168822 Noted as Gauntlet 09 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.
Flying Display at Wings Over Illawarra 2017 as Tiger 09 of 816 Sqn.

Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk N48-009

N48-010

910 10 11 168823 Delivered, waiting details.

N48-011

911 11 11 168824 Noted as Gauntlet 11 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.

N48-012

912 12 11 168825 Noted at Canberra 11/07/17 as Gauntlet 12 of 725 Sqn.
Noted at Nowra 22/08/17 as Gauntlet 12 of 725 Sqn.

N48-013

913 13 11 168826 Noted as Gauntlet 13 with 725 Sqn at Nowra on 16/09/16.

Highlight for Album: MH-60R SeahawkN48-013

N48-014

914 14 12 168827 Noted as Gauntlet 14 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.

N48-015

915 15 12 168828 Noted in Darwin 06/17.

N48-016

916 16 12 168829 Delivered, waiting details.

N48-017

917 17 12 168830 Delivered, waiting details.

N48-018

918 18 12 168831 Delivered, waiting details.

N48-019

919 19 12 168832 Noted at HMAS Watson 13/12/16.
Noted at Nowra as Gauntlet 19 of 725 Sqn 30/08/17.

N48-020

920 20 12 168833 Noted as Gauntlet 20 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.
Deployed on HMAS Ballarat 06/04/17.
Noted at Canberra 02/08/17 as in Service 816 Sqn RAN as Tiger 20.
On 09/10/2017 N48-20 was aboard HMAS Warramunga when it broke away from its lashings during a rough passage across the Great Australian Bight en-route to the Middle East.
There are unconfirmed reports that the airframe may be a write off
There was a replacement helicopter placed aboard HMAS Warramunga so that it could continue its mission.

N48-021

921 21 12 168834 Delivered, waiting details.

N48-022

922 22 12 168835 Noted at Canberra 29/08/17 as in Service 816 Sqn RAN as Tiger 22.

Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk N48-022

N48-023

923 23 13 168836 Noted as Gauntlet 23 with 725 Sqn at Nowra.

N48-024

924 24 13 168837 loaded aboard an RAAF C-17A and departed the US for Australia 30/08/16.
The final MH-60R was handed over to the RAN in a ceremony at Nowra on 12/09/2016
The ceremony included the opening of the new Maritime Helicopter Support Company (MHSCo)
Participant in Exercise Joint Warrior 2018 in UK
Named "Warlock"

Highlight for Album: MH-60R SeahawkN48-024
        166402
(162098)		 Built as SH-60B 162098, (C/N 70-0388),
1st of 7 SH-60B's rebuilt to MH-60R "Bromeo" standard,
Re-serialled 166402 after conversion,
05/08/2005 First flight as MH-60R (and first ever MH-60 flight),
To HSM-41 as TS-400 at NAS North Island, CA,
09/08/2010 Retired to AMARC with inventory code ANIM0015,
17/01/2014 Road freighted to Fleet readiness Centre Southeast (FRCSE) at NAS Jacksonville, Florida for conversion to Instructional Airframe,
Delivered to HMAS Albatross, Nowra for use as Ground Instructional Airframe.

Highlight for Album: MH-60R Seahawk 166402
 
     

The Author of this page is Brendan Cowan (updated by Martin Edwards)

Sources: Defence Media Centre, www.navy.gov.au , www.helis.com , Navy News , Airforces Monthly Issue #317 August 2014,  South Coast Register

Emails: LTCDR Todd Glynn, Martin Edwards, Messageboard Discussion , Brendan Cowan, Gordon Birkett,

Updated 8th October 2018
     

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