Sikorsky Aircraft has signed a marketing teaming agreement with United Rotorcraft, a division of Air Methods Corp., that formalizes how the companies will meet growing global interest in the S-70 Firehawk helicopter used by government agencies worldwide to combat wildland fires.
A Sikorsky S-70 Black Hawk aircraft becomes a Firehawk when United Rotorcraft adds a 1,000-gallon water tank system, a raised landing gear (to accommodate the tank) and associated integrated avionics, a process that typically takes six months.
The new agreement will allow United Rotorcraft to contract for bulk orders of S-70 Black Hawk aircraft, much as it did in August 2021 with an initial five-aircraft order from Sikorsky. Four of the five aircraft will arrive at United Rotorcraft”™s completions facility in Englewood, Colorado, later this year from the S-70 production line at PZL Mielec in Poland, which is owned by Sikorsky”™s parent company Lockheed Martin.
The first aircraft of the bulk order will be modified to the FireHawk configuration for delivery in 2023 to the State of Colorado.
“This agreement addresses a critical need to deliver the proven Firehawk helicopter into customer hands in months, not years,” said Jason Lambert, vice president for global commercial and military systems at Stratford-based Sikorsky. “United Rotorcraft and Air Methods have taken a leadership position to advance the availability of this proven aircraft in anticipation of future orders from U.S. and international markets.”
