Duncan Looi
LOCKHEED Martin has signed a Direct Commercial Sale contract with the Philippine Department of National Defense (DND) to deliver an S-70i Black Hawk Full Flight Simulator, Virtual Maintenance Trainer, and associated courseware to the Philippine Air Force (PAF).
The Philippines operates the world’s largest fleet of S-70i Black Hawks produced by Lockheed Martin company PZL Mielec with 47 units for a range of missions, including search and rescue (SAR), humanitarian aid, firefighting, and troop transport across the archipelago. The contract strengthens the PAF’s ability to train Black Hawk pilots and maintainers locally and supports the country’s broader defence modernisation efforts. It also marks an expansion of Lockheed Martin’s training and simulation portfolio as the first order of Lockheed Martin S-70i Black Hawk training devices.
The PAF recently completed its 47-strong fleet before the end of August, with one unit of the 48-unit order being lost in 2021 following a crash during a night proficiency training flight. The PAF originally signed a deal for 16 S-70is in 2019 for US$192M which were subsequently delivered from 2020 to 2021, followed by a US$516M follow-up deal for 32 more S-70is.
“It’s a privilege to partner with the PAF with a suite of systems to support their training requirements as they grow their fleet of S-70i Black Hawk helicopters,” said Lockheed Martin Vice President of Air and Commercial Solutions Tim James. “This contract award is a long-term investment in the PAF’s mission readiness and reflects Lockheed Martin’s proven ability to deliver sustainment solutions across the entire operational pipeline.”
The S-70i Black Hawk Full Flight Simulator is an aircraft digital twin training solution that replicates the exact sights and sensations of flying an S-70i Black Hawk. The Virtual Maintenance Trainer delivers high-fidelity, physics-based models of every airframe subsystem, from hydraulics to avionics, that lets maintainers train in a fully immersive, risk-free environment. In addition to the training devices and courseware, the contract includes sustainment and spares support through 2032. The PAF will continue to train Black Hawk pilots at the US-based Sikorsky Training Academy as their in-country training capability is being established.
“Lockheed Martin remains committed to its longstanding partnership with the PAF. Through these advanced training systems, we effectively support the needs of its growing force and expanding Black Hawk fleet. These solutions build on the PAF’s ongoing efforts to enhance training, ensuring crews and maintainers remain mission-ready while advancing their broader modernisation goals,” said its Vice President and Regional Chief Executive, Asia & India William Blair.
Lockheed Martin’s suite of S-70i Black Hawk training devices ranges from desktop trainers to fully immersive virtual environments. Lockheed Martin uses a digital twin of the Black Hawk to build the most accurate and up-to-date representation of the aircraft’s systems, components, and configurations to enhance training effectiveness, and a digital thread of the Black Hawk’s operational flight program to create high-fidelity simulations in days rather than years to keep pace with aircraft modernisation efforts. In addition to the Black Hawk, Lockheed Martin also supports training for other Lockheed Martin aircraft, including the CH-53K, F-35, F-16 and C-130J.–-shp/adj/dl (Pix:LOCKHEED MARTIN)
