Ex-US military Black Hawks to boost firefighting capability

The two Black Hawks bought by an Adelaide firm will be available year-round to battle bushfires in Australia.

Aerotech pilots Scott Summers and Chris Boyd with the first Black Hawk helicopter to be registered as a civilian aircraft in Australia. Picture: Supplied.

Two former US military Black Hawk helicopters will be permanently stationed in Australia for aerial firefighting operations, after being bought by an Adelaide aviation company.

Aerotech has already taken delivery of one Black Hawk, with the second to be shipped in coming months.

Managing director Sam McCabe said the helicopters would be the first Black Hawks on the Australian civil aircraft register, and would make a significant difference in bushfire season.

“Black Hawk helicopters are fast, reliable, can be deployed quickly and drop more than 4000 litres of water a load to contain fires quickly,” Mr McCabe said.

The decision to buy the aircraft followed the recent bushfires royal commission, which found state and federal governments should develop a sovereign aerial fleet comprising large “type 1” helicopters.

Mr McCabe said having two Black Hawks in Australia year-round would help overcome the issue of relying on northern-hemisphere based helicopters.

“The length of the bushfire season is getting longer in both hemispheres, therefore making it difficult for Australia to access these additional resources from overseas in shoulder periods,” he said.

Although Aerotech is yet to finalise any contracts for the Black Hawks, Mr McCabe was confident they would prove a valuable addition to the country’s firefighting resources.

The company paid around $4 million for each aircraft which will be available for other work outside of fire season.

“They’re a big aircraft, and they can lift big things,” said pilot Chris Boyd.

“We can lift and reposition a 4000kg airconditioning unit for instance. That sort of capability has previously not been available in Australia.”

Although two Australian Defence Force Black Hawk helicopters have been promised to the New South Wales rural fire service, the handover is not expected before 2023.

Another 27 Black Hawks used by the ADF will be retired in the next year and put up for sale, but the process of reconfiguring the machines for civilian use is complicated.

“Aerotech is committed to investing in the world’s most capable and effective aerial firefighting fleet, and supporting government aerial firefighting strategies,” Mr McCabe said.

“We’re employing South Australian pilots, engineers, ground crews and support staff. Several

Australian businesses directly or indirectly will provide services to support the Black Hawks and benefit from their introduction.”

Primarily an aerial firefighting outfit, Aerotech pioneered South Australia’s existing firefighting strategy known as Rapid Initial Attack with the Country Fire Service more than 30-years ago.

Mr McCabe said that had since been adopted by fire authorities across the country.

“We’re focused on keeping fires small by deploying aircraft quickly and dropping large amounts of water in the shortest possible time frame, thereby providing volunteers on the ground with more time to contain and extinguish fires,” he said.