NOWRA, Australia, 26 February 2024 – Sikorsky Australia, a Lockheed Martin Company, is continuing its commitment to expand Australia’s aviation industrial workforce in 2024 by growing its apprenticeship numbers year on year. In 2024, Sikorsky Australia welcomed five new apprentices into the program, which now totals 16 apprentices, representing nearly 20% of the technical workforce and an annual investment of over $1M.

Leveraging from the Royal Australian Navy’s foundational investment in 2018, the program has continued to prosper under Sikorsky Australia’s stewardship, forming a critical part of the growth strategy for the future workforce.

The new apprentices in the program will complete a four-year aircraft maintenance engineer apprenticeship where they will learn the skills of the trade required to sustain the Royal Australian Navy’s most advanced naval helicopter - MH-60R Seahawks - at Sikorsky Australia’s Maintenance and Logistics Support facility in Nowra.

Sikorsky Australia’s General Manager, Cliff Kyle said, “We are thrilled to onboard our new apprentices who will work side by side with our skilled technical workforce.”

“We will step the apprentices through an intensive aviation program teaching them the core skills to inspect, service, repair, test and troubleshoot complex systems and components onboard the Seahawks and aid them to become nationally qualified aircraft maintenance engineers.”

“Our apprentices are the cornerstone of our talent pipeline in growing Australia’s defence industry aviation industrial base.”

“The ability to capture regional talent and grow them in this truly specialised field that is contributing to national security is not only amazing for the individual, but incredibly rewarding for the entire team at Sikorsky Australia.”

“We are honoured to be building a workforce that supports the Royal Australian Navy’s mission at sea and our highly skilled team are proud to be a part of assuring the highest level of operational readiness for the Navy’s Seahawk fleet,” said Cliff Kyle.

Currently, Sikorsky Australia’s apprenticeship cohort includes 16 apprentices at various stages in the apprenticeship program. To date, all of the apprentices who have completed their apprenticeships have gone on to take up full time roles in the company. Since 2018, this has resulted in eight engineers transitioning to full time roles.

Over the next five years, Sikorsky Australia will continue to grow its skilled technical workforce in the region from 200 to over 300 personnel supporting the maintenance and logistics aspects of the Sikorsky operations.

About the MH-60R Seahawk

Sikorsky’s MH-60R Seahawk helicopter brings transformational anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare capabilities to navies around the world. The MH-60R aircraft is built on four decades of Seahawk learning and knowledge. Designed and built to US Navy specifications, the Seahawk helicopter aircraft is rugged, powerful, and reliable. For more visit Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawks.

About Lockheed Martin Australia

Headquartered in Canberra, Lockheed Martin Australia is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin Corporation. The company employs more than 1,400 people in Australia working on a wide range of major programs spanning the aerospace, Defence and civil sectors.

Media Contacts: Stacey Ward, +61 439 369 305, stacey.l.ward@global.lmco.com