Summary
- Ace Aeronautics upgrades surplus H-60 Blackhawk helicopters, selling to allied militaries and civilians.
- Also, Ace Aeronautics offers cockpit upgrades, sensor installations, blade fold kits, maintenance services, and more for H-60s.
- Ukraine Defense Intelligence utilizes Ace Aeronautics upgraded H-60 Blackhawks against Russian threats.
The H-60 Blackhawk helicopter family, which had its first flight on October 17, 1974, has now had some H-60s find a second life as support helicopters for civilians and foreign nations. These H-60s, with new lives, have found themselves fighting wildfires and helping Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence forces after modernization by several firms.
Breathing new life into old helicopters
Ace Aeronautics, based in Alabama, is a primary firm involved in upgrading H-60 Blackhawks released by the US Army. Ace Aeronautics has delivered two Blackhawks to Ukraine and Portugal.
Ace Aeronautics prides itself on its Ace Deck VL-60 product, which replaces the traditional H-60 cockpit analog gauges with Garmin G5000H Flight Management System (FMS) and Vehicle Management System. The new cockpit comes with increased situational awareness and touchscreens for ease of operation.
Additionally, the UH-60s can be modified to have an infrared and television camera sensor ball under the nose. The installation is very easy and does not require any structural modifications, giving the H-60 new search capabilities. Perfect for search and rescue, law enforcement, and night operations.
Photo: Ace Aeronautics
Plus, Ace Aeronautics does have the ability to retrofit H-60s with a blade fold kit. This allows the H-60 to be tucked into a hangar in 12-13 minutes with four personnel.
Photo: Blade Aeronautics
Finally, Ace Aeronautics has other capabilities on hand. One of those is a paint shop that can paint not just helicopters up to the CH-47 Chinook but other aircraft like the Beechcraft King Air. Additionally, Ace Aeronautics does maintenance, repair, and overhaul work to get the H-60s airworthy again. If this was insufficient, Ace Aeronautics does have a rapid prototyping capability and flight test program. Yes, Ace Aeronautics is more than digitizing H-60 cockpits.
How does one get a surplus H-60 Blackhawk in the first place?
A good question with a simple answer. Namely the US General Services Administration (GSA) has a special auction website for selling surplus aircraft and aircraft parts. As of May 25, two helicopters are up for bid – a 2016 AIRBUS EC120B, tail number N250WH, and a EUROCOPTER AS350 B2: Tail No. N455AE.
Once Ace Aeronautics gets their hands on a H-60, they can sell the modernized H-60 to almost anybody these wish from allied militaries to civilian users
Most famous user: Ukraine Defense Intelligence
Yes, Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence uses Ace Aeronautics upgraded H-60 Blackhawks. Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence obtains behind-the-scenes intelligence about Russian threats to Ukraine and has taken both preemptive and retaliatory action. Having fast, agile helicopters to insert Defense Intelligence personnel is key.
Defense Intelligence’s leader, Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov, who rarely smiles, himself has participated in raids and gotten wounded in action. Furthermore, according to an April 16, 2023, Ukrinform report, the flight engineer shared that former Mil Mi-8 and Mi-24 pilots were able to master the upgraded H-60 in hours. In fact,
“Having experience operating the Mi-8 and Mi-24, we flew on the Black Hawk on the first day we received it. We just sat down and made the flight. … The helicopter impresses with its reliability, ease of operation and combat survivability.”
Clearly, Ace Aeronautics makes an upgrade package that works.
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