Sikorsky Aircraft has announced a series of orders at the show. The Saudi Ministry of the Interior (MOI) has ordered 16 S-92 and 15 S-76 multi-mission helicopters for security, traffic surveillance, search and rescue, medical evacuation and patient transfer missions.
The order also includes nine new Schweizer 434 training helicopters, with operations, maintenance, logistics and training support to facilitate a rapid entry into service from March 2008. The value of the Saudi order was not divulged, but Sikorsky said that the series of orders being announced at the show will have a combined value of around $2 billion.
The MOI is undergoing a major modernisation programme and faces increasing demand for helicopter support throughout the Kingdom as a result. The Ministry issued requests for proposals to six manufacturers in the first quarter of last year and issued a letter of intent selecting Sikorsky in December 2006.
Sikorsky Aircraft has also announced a direct commercial sale of 10 Black Hawks to the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, for operational use and training. The company has recently completed the delivery of eight UH-60L Black Hawks to the Special Operations Aviation Brigade of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan’s armed forces under a US Government foreign military sale (FMS) contract.
The first three were delivered to Amman last summer, and have been used for special operations and border security. The new UH-60Ls will complement five UH-60/S-70As used by the Royal Squadron.
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Source: Flight Daily News
