NATO member state Croatia has been approved to purchase eight Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.
Regulators at the US Department of State, which along with congressional lawmakers exercises approval authority over arms exports, approved the request from Zagreb on 26 January.
“This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security of the United States by improving the security of a NATO ally that continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress in Europe,” the state department says.
In addition to its eight Black Hawks, Croatia’s Foreign Military Sales request also includes 19 GE Aerospace T700-GE-701D engines and all necessary avionics.
The entire package is valued at $500 million.
“The proposed sale will improve Croatia’s capability to deter current and future threats and support coalition operations as well as promote interoperability with the United States and other NATO forces,” the state department notes.
The deal continues a streak of wins for Sikorsky, which has made overseas UH-60 sales a strategic focus, as the US Army winds down its acquisition of the iconic multi-role helicopter.
In January 2023, Australia confirmed an order for 40 Black Hawks, while Greece received regulatory approval in December to purchase 35 UH-60s.
Sikorsky is also producing 12 S-70 Black Hawks for Romania, four of which were delivered last November. The S-70 direct commercial sales variant of the venerable rotorcraft is produced in Poland by Sikorsky subsidiary PZL Mielec.
It will likely be some time before Croatia receives its UH-60s. In October, Sikorsky president Paul Lemmo told FlightGlobal there is an approximately three-year wait between finalised order contracts and first delivery for Black Hawks, owing to the company’s backlog.
Sikorsky delivered the 5,000th example of the long-serving UH-60 in January 2023.
The company marked the centenary of its founding in at the 2023 Paris air show in June.
