Lockheed Martin Sikorsky Lands Army Deal to Transform the Legendary Black Hawk® Helicopter
Sikorsky, a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), has announced a new partnership with the U.S. Army aimed at funding Black Hawk® upgrade engineering projects. The initial $43 million contract will focus on crucial enhancements: optimization of the airframe and integration of a digital backbone feature to enable rapid unmanned aerial systems (UAS) integration. Additionally, the contract includes the formulation of requirements and frameworks utilizing model-based systems engineering (MBSE).
“Sikorsky is ready to implement cutting-edge technologies that will strengthen the tested Black Hawk helicopter and grant U.S. Army personnel a competitive edge in areas such as the Indo-Pacific,” expressed Hamid Salim, vice president of Army and Air Force Systems at Sikorsky. “Incorporating launched effects into the Black Hawk will enhance its functionalities and offer a significant advantage. Upgrades focus on reducing costs, increasing efficacy, and improving the overall maintenance and support of the aircraft.”
The agreement will support the Army’s immediate objective to integrate launched effects into the Black Hawk, allowing the aircraft to deploy UAS and other assets to enhance its operational capabilities. Lockheed Martin has been demonstrating launched effects capability with Black Hawk for several years and is working alongside the Army to produce a federated capability in 2026.
The MBSE and digital engineering initiative will emphasize creating a digital thread of the Black Hawk for collaborative and streamlined design, testing, and maintenance processes of the aircraft. The digital backbone initiative for the Black Hawk, supporting a Modular Open System Approach (MOSA), will involve the development of advanced systems and software to facilitate the aircraft’s modernization. This digital backbone allows for quick capability insertion to promptly address future platform mission requirements.
This preliminary focus on airframe upgrades, primary fuel optimization, and digital backbone establishes a solid foundation for further rapid capability enhancements to the Black Hawk. With an upgraded engine, airframe enhancements, and a primary fuel optimization, the aircraft will be able to carry a greater payload over longer distances, with future enhancements to flight controls incorporating autonomy and AI technologies that will aid pilots in challenging conditions, thereby improving mission safety and effectiveness.
“In partnership with our network of hundreds of American suppliers, we are committed to delivering the most advanced and capable modernized Black Hawk to the U.S. Army,” Salim noted. “We look forward to continuing our collaboration with the Army to ensure that the Black Hawk remains a pivotal component of our nation’s defense capabilities for many years ahead.”
Sikorsky is already implementing technology today that will lead to enhanced features of a modernized Black Hawk. For example, Sikorsky is producing and providing upturned exhaust systems II kits. These kits offer the current Black Hawk and a modernized Black Hawk with substantial performance enhancements in InfraRed suppression, weight reduction, along with improvements in reliability and maintainability.
