CLARK AIR BASE —- Five new units of Sikorsky S-70i Black Hawk Helicopters were turned over to the Philippine Air Force in ceremonies at the Haribon Hangar here on Aug. 13.
Lt. Gen. Arthur M. Cordura, commanding general of the PAF, served as the guest of honor for the said ceremony and Piotr Neidbala, business development and program director of PZL Mielec, presented the documents for the new delivered choppers.
The said helicopters are from the Polish subsidiary of Lockheed Martin, PZL Mielec in Poland and were delivered to Clark Air Base on July 15 this year.
The purchase of 32 S-70i Black Hawk helicopters combat utility variant was made in 2021 by the Department of National Defense in a P31.75 billion contract with PZL Mielec as part of the Philippines’ military modernization program.
The first ten helicopters were delivered on June 10 and Dec. 9 of 2024.
Another five are expected to arrive by the end of this year and the remaining seven in 2026 for the total of 32 S-70i Black Hawks.
These Black Hawks are used by PAF in relief operations, troop deployment, counter insurgency operations and have also been used in responding at the previous fire in Tondo, Manila.
According to the PAF, the capability improvement program of the said Black Hawk helicopters is also in progress such as the installation of auxiliary tanks for increased operational endurance.
