Defence representatives, and the Assistant Minister for Defence, have joined the US Navy and Australian industry in marking the completion of the first-ever deep maintenance activity on a US Navy MH-60R Seahawk ‘Romeo’ helicopter at Sikorsky Australia’s facilities in Nowra, NSW.

The US Navy aircraft arrived in Australia in October 2022 and has undergone the successful deep maintenance activity known as a Periodic Maintenance Interval (PMI). The activity was completed in June, with the milestone celebrated at an event with those involved.

Commodore Darren Rae, Director General Navy Aviation, Aircrew Training and Commons, said the induction of the US Navy MH-60R into Australian facilities is a strong demonstration of the Australian capability in the Indo-Pacific region and the pathway to access it.

“The principal aim of this activity was to demonstrate to the US the capability of Australian industry and the pathway available to perform maintenance, repair and overhaul of this helicopter in our region,” Commodore Rae said. 

“This demonstration of Australian industry’s support to US Navy helicopter maintenance is a hallmark for the steady progress being made in the US-Australian Alliance.”

“This is a strategically significant milestone for both Australia and the United States, with our nations ultimately delivering against our shared priorities to strengthen supply chain resilience in the Indo-Pacific.”

Captain William Hargreaves, US Navy H-60 Multi-Mission Helicopters Program Manager, highlighted the importance of the activity in strengthening ties between the two countries and allowing Australian industry to conduct maintenance as if the aircraft was on United States soil.

“Demonstrating successful PMI on a U.S. Navy MH-60R in Australia is a testament to our two nation’s shared trust and commitments in our century-long partnership with the Royal Australian Navy,” Captain Hargreaves said.

“Achieving this maintenance event expands our aircraft’s footprint ensuring the fleet is ready to fight tonight.”

Sikorsky Australia, a Lockheed Martin company, is the Royal Australian Navy’s industry partner for delivering comprehensive deep-maintenance services and intermediate level maintenance support for the Romeo helicopter.

Commodore Rae highlighted the exemplary support from the Sikorsky Australia team in achieving this milestone.

“Australia has a world-class industry capability in Nowra that continues to be highly successful in supporting the Royal Australian Navy’s fleet of Romeo helicopters,” Commodore Rae said.

“The Sikorsky Australia team can now add the highly successful completion of this US Navy Romeo deep maintenance activity to its list of achievements.”

Lockheed Martin Australia and New Zealand’s Chief Executive Warren McDonald said, “Sikorsky Australia was honoured to be entrusted by the Australian-US navies as their industry partner to execute this inaugural proof-of-concept service on a US Navy MH-60R Seahawk ‘Romeo’.”

“Sikorsky Australia’s skilled aircraft maintenance engineers have completed 46 PMIs on the Royal Australian Navy’s MH-60Rs. This experience combined with the Romeo configuration alignment and interchangeable maintenance procedures between our two navies enabled seamless integration of the US Navy Romeo into Sikorsky Australia’s maintenance program.”

“Congratulations to the team, the Australian-US navies and Sikorsky Australia, on this exemplar PMI achievement. It underlines our shared commitment to advancing military interoperability, strengthening the MH-60R global supply chain, and showcases Australia’s world-class industrial capability to sustain the most advanced maritime helicopter, the MH-60R.”

The collaborative effort and dedication from teams in the Australian and US Navies has been duly recognised with an Australia Day Honours Award of a Conspicuous Service and a NAVAIR Commander’s Award.

Australia’s former MH-60R Seahawk Romeo Helicopter Assurance Program Co-Lead, Commander Andrew Newman, was presented a Conspicuous Service Cross in January 2023 for his outstanding achievements and devotion to pursuing this activity.

Similarly, the US Navy’s PMA-299 Special Project Team was awarded the NAVAIR Commander’s Business Innovation award in May 2023 for their innovation, attention to detail, and expertise resulting in the first ever US Navy aviation deep maintenance activity by an Australian industrial partner.

About Lockheed Martin Australia and New Zealand

Headquartered in Canberra, Lockheed Martin Australia and New Zealand is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin Corporation. The company employs more than 1,500 people across Australia and New Zealand working on research, design, development, logistics, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services spanning the aerospace, defence and civil sectors.

Media Contacts:

Stacey Ward, +61 439 369 305, stacey.l.ward@lmco.com