Australia Approved to Buy 40 Black Hawk Helicopters Worth $1.95 Billion

The United States has approved a possible sale of 40 UH-60M Black Hawk Helicopters and related equipment for an estimated cost of $1.95 billion.
The principal contractor will be Lockheed Martin, Bethesda, MD. The purchaser typically requests offsets.
The Government of Australia has requested to buy (40 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters; 88 T700-GE 701D engines, Counter Missile Warning Systems and Embedded Global Position Systems with Inertial Navigation
Also included are VHF/UHF/LOS SATCOM radios; Radar Warning Receivers; Laser Detecting Sets; APX-123A Identification Friend or Foe Transponder; ARC-220 High Frequency (HF) radio with KY-100M; VRC-100 Ground Stations; AN/PYQ-10 Simple Key Loader (SKL); KIV-77 Common Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) Applique Crypto Computers; KY-100M COMSEC Encryption devices; AN/ARN-147(V) Very High Frequency Omni-Directional Range(VOR)/Instrument Landing System (ILS) receiver radio; AN/ARN-149(V) Low Frequency (LF)/Automatic Direction Finder (ADF) radio receiver; AN/ARN-153 Tactical Air Navigation System (TACAN) receiver transmitter; AN/APN-209 radar altimeter.
AN/ARC-210 radios; EBC-406HM Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT); Encrypted Aircraft Wireless Intercommunications Systems (EAWIS); Improved Heads Up Display (IHUD); Signal Data Converters for IHUD; Blue Force Trackers (BFT-2); Improved Data Modems (IDM); Color Weather Radars; MX-10D EO/IR with Laser Designator; EO/IR Cabin Monitoring Systems; EO/IR Digital Video Recorder; AN/ARC-201D RT-1478D; Engine Inlet Barrier Filters (EIBF); Ballistic Armor Protection Systems (BAPS).
The proposed sale will replace Australia’s current multi-role helicopter fleet with a more reliable and proven system that will allow Australia to maintain the appropriate level of readiness to conduct combined operations.
The UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter will improve the Australian Army’s ability to deploy combat power to share Australia’s strategic environment, deter actions against its interests, and, when required, respond with credible force. Australia will have no difficulty absorbing this equipment into its armed forces.