The Army accepted delivery of the 300th UH-72A Lakota helicopter during a rollout ceremony at Airbus Helicopters production facility in Columbus, Mississippi, May 14.
The 300th Lakota aircraft marks a milestone for the Army, with the program having been consistently executed on time and on budget.
"One of the things that this aircraft is to us besides being a capability is a representation of what truly the U.S. Army and industry partners can do together in a successful manner," Col. Thomas Todd, Utility Helicopters project manager, said. "At the end of the day, the Lakota is a critical key to America's Army. And no doubt about it, it will be a critical key in America's Army for the untold future.
"Now we have found a new use, an additional use for a platform that when in constrained times and we don't have a whole lot of extra dollars, that we can take and re-shift within the Army and reallocate to a much needed mission."
He thanked the Airbus workforce, applauding their efforts that helped to make the program a success. "It is now doing other missions because of its utility, efficiency and the goodness of the platform and what you deliver," he said.
Todd said this will enable Utility Helicopters Project Office and the Program Executive Office for Aviation to support their ultimate customers -- the users that fly the aircraft. "I'm certainly proud of that," he added.
He recognized Lt. Col. Dave Cheney, Lakota helicopters product manager, describing him and his team as "where the rubber meets the road."
"This is where success happens from the Army side in bringing this capability to the war fighter," he said.
Lakota helicopters enable civil search and rescue operations, support test and training centers, perform medical evacuation and provide support to counter-drug operations. Todd said the Army has decided, through the Aviation Restructure Initiative, that the Lakota will be the Army's training helicopter, replacing the aging TH-67 fleet that are obsolete and more costly to maintain.
"That's important to me," said Todd, referring to his son who will one day also become an Army aviator. "Not only will he train in a dual engine aircraft, he will train in a modern aircraft. At the end of the day, we will now be able to train as we fight."
Under the ARI, the Army will replace the current single engine obsolete trainers at Fort Rucker with the Lakota, an aircraft in the Army inventory since 2006. The modern twin-engine digital aircraft will ensure that new aviators train on the same type of aircraft they will see once assigned to their active Army or National Guard units.
The Lakota operates in permissive, non-hostile environments, performing air movement, aerial sustainment, civil search and rescue, command and control, reconnaissance, casualty evacuation and medical evacuation missions for the Army and National Guard. It has been fielded to National Guard units in 41 states. Overseas, the aircraft is in service in Germany, Kwajalein in the South Pacific, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and is now deploying to Guam.
The National Guard's Security and Support package was designed, certified and delivered in record time with 107 aircraft anticipated to be equipped with this state-of-the-art capability. This effort has led to the seizure of more than 200,000 pounds of drugs and nearly 60,000 apprehensions under the National Guard and Customs and Border Patrol joint efforts.
The UH-72A replaced aging UH-1 and OH-58A/C aircraft that are a high cost to maintain and operate for these missions. It also allowed the Army to return 23 UH-60 Black Hawks to support critical wartime missions during Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.
"We have kept this fast track since the beginning, and I am very proud of our workforce," said Marc Paganini, president and chief executive officer for Airbus Helicopters. He lauded the team for their hard work and passion in everything they have done.
Several congressional representatives attended and spoke at the event, including Rep. Alan Nunnelee from the 1st district of Mississippi, Rep. Gregg Harper from the 3rd district of Mississippi, Rep. Jeff Miller from the 1st district of Florida and Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant. They recognized the Airbus workforce for the "quality craftsmanship" of the aircraft and acknowledged the team effort that it took to achieve this milestone for the Army.
"In the U.S. Army, we don't man equipment, we equip the Soldier," Todd said. "Part of my job as a weapon systems developer is to bring a capability to the sons and daughters of our nation so they can do their missions and come home safely. This happens to be one of the most capable ways that we do that."
The Utility Helicopters Project Office is already looking at how they can improve the support concept at Fort Rucker and take advantage of economies of scale with having a large Lakota presence there in the near future. They are also working on follow-on contracting, training and the incorporation of material solutions as the Army's Training and Doctrine Command and the National Guard users refine their requirements.
Todd said re-shifting of aircraft assets is not a new concept for the Army, having been trained in a UH-1 Huey during flight training. "That is not the training helicopter today. We have shifted since, but we had to do it in times of need before. We think it's a prudent decision not only for our Soldier but also for our taxpayers," he said.
"I am proud to be standing here today representing our U.S. Army, our Soldiers and our project office. We don't take that for granted. And I can't say enough for the blood, sweat and tears that you put into building these."
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