Nichols Martin
Lockheed Martin‘s Sikorsky subsidiary has completed the qualification procedure for a comprehensive weapons system developed for S-70M and S-70i Black Hawk helicopters.
An independent qualification assurance board confirmed the effectiveness and conformance of Sikorsky’s Black Hawk weapons system to military airworthiness, operational safety and firing standards, Lockheed said Monday.
The system employs an electro-optical infrared sensor technology and designed to equip military helicopters with additional weapons mounted on external wings for medium attack operations.
“Sikorsky has vastly simplified the complex task of placing rounds onto a target from standoff distances by calculating the complex ballistics required for effective airborne gunnery,” said Bill Gostic, vice president of Sikorsky’s global military systems and services business.
Black Hawk’s external wings are configured to support four slots for weapon combinations containing fixed-forward 12.7 millimeter guns, Hydra 70 rocket pods or Hellfire missiles.
The helicopter is also designed accommodate 7.62-millimeter mini-guns that can be installed on cabin windows.
Sikorsky wrapped up six-year development work on its weapons system in 2017, which included two years of live-fire tests that took place at the U.S. Army‘s Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona.
