Air Force Reports Cost Overruns Due to Combat Rescue Helicopter Cuts
Originally, the service had planned to purchase 113 new helicopters from aircraft manufacturer Sikorsky, a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin. However, the fiscal year 2023 budget request unveiled a plan to limit the fleet to 75 helicopters and assess the future of the combat rescue mission.
Officials from the program revealed this week that the Air Force’s decision to reduce its HH-60W purchase would trigger a report to Congress. Under the law, programs that experience a unit cost increase of 25% or more must receive certification from the Secretary of Defense that the effort is essential to national security. This process is referred to as a Nunn-McCurdy Breach.
Agnes Serenko, HH-60W program manager, informed reporters during an August 10 briefing at the Air Force’s Life Cycle Industry Day in Dayton, Ohio, that the service is preparing a report on the program’s cost. She provided further details about the cost growth.
The HH-60W was intended to replace the aging HH-60G combat rescue helicopter in the Air Force’s fleet. The new variant can carry twice as much fuel as its predecessor and is equipped with advanced flight navigation tools and defensive systems. The Air Force has already ordered 65 HH-60Ws, and its fiscal year 2023 budget request included $870 million to purchase the final 10 helicopters.
This strategic shift comes as the Air Force reevaluates the role that combat search and rescue aircraft will play in future conflicts, particularly as the US military shifts its focus away from the Middle East toward potential conflicts with China or Russia. Recovering downed pilots and other personnel will likely involve navigating more hostile and complex threat environments that aren’t well-suited for helicopters.
Officials from the Pentagon, Air Combat Command, Air Force Research Laboratory, and Air Force Materiel Command are considering what this new approach to combat search and rescue might look like, and lawmakers have called for a report on the service’s vision. The House version of the fiscal year 2023 defense policy bill seeks details on how the service might perform the mission in different parts of the world and what capability gaps might arise from procuring fewer HH-60Ws.
Ed Stanhouse, deputy program executive officer for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and special operations forces, told reporters during the same August 10 briefing that the service is in the “exploration mode” as it considers the future of the mission.
“The team is looking at a variety of technologies,” he said, noting that the service is considering the utility of unmanned platforms as well as higher speed aircraft that can “keep up with a fighter.”
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