Australian Army Black Hawks perform in PNG

Operated by 16th Aviation Brigade, the exercise served as an opportunity for crew to test the handling of the utility helicopter in the high-altitude and highly dense mountain ranges of PNG, which Defence dubbed one of the region’s “most challenging aviation environments”.

Army currently boasts a fleet of 19 UH-60M Black Hawks, with a total planned fleet of 40. The UH-60M was favoured by Defence to replace Army’s problematic MRH-90 Taipan multirole helicopter fleet.

CO Task Unit Endurance Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Porada said this year’s Helicon Luk exercise marked a “significant step” in Army’s UH-60M transition program.

“Regional sustainment in an archipelagic area is a complex series of challenges, ensuring the supply chains of fuel, spare parts, as well as food and water can be maintained,” Lt-Col Porada said.

“This year’s Exercise Helicon Luk has been a great success in practicing our regional sustainment.”

Lt-Col Porada said it was a “great honour and privilege” to be involved in the UH-60M’s first international deployment, which deeply mirrors his own first overseas deployment with Army Aviation. In 2009, Lt-Col Porada was deployed to PNG for Exercise Helicon Luk aboard Army’s S-70A Black Hawk.

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Elsewhere, one UH-60M pilot said the PNG’s topography and weather patterns posed a “welcome challenge” for aircrew.

“Papua New Guinea has very unique geographical features, with the high mountains that we don’t have in Australia. In addition, the high temperature and humidity make it an environment where operating helicopters is quite different to Australia,” the pilot said.

“Operating in mountain bowls up at 10,000 feet is quite surreal. It’s a place where likely no human feet have stepped if they didn’t step off a helicopter,” they added.

The pilot noted the next steps for the UH-60M Black Hawk’s introduction into service.

“For future iterations, in addition to doing the individual qualifications for our crews, we’ll seek to do collective training where we involve multiple aircraft in formation, operate with troops on board, or layer on tactical scenarios,” they said.

Earlier this month, Army unveiled a $1.3 million investment in the creation of a new trainee engineering program to support it UH-60M Black Hawk fleet, in partnership with Lockheed Martin Australia.

The new four-year apprentice program combines formal theory learning with hands-on practical experience, according to Lockheed Martin Australia (LMA).

The first cohort of six aircraft maintenance engineer apprentices have already been onboarded with LMA and are now stationed at Holsworthy Barracks.