On Saturday, October 18, 2025, the press service of the Lithuanian Armed Forces (Lietuvos kariuomenė) shared on social media photographs of the first two of four (with an option for two more) Lockheed Martin/Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk multirole helicopters.
Photo: Lietuvos kariuomenė via Facebook
“Birds in a Cage: Here Are Lithuania’s First UH-60M Helicopters. The first Black Hawks of the Lithuanian Army. The first Black Hawks bearing the tricolor flag and the Vytis Cross” — reads the photo caption.
On October 19, 2019, the Lithuanian Ministry of National Defence announced the start of negotiations to purchase six UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters to replace three Mil Mi-8T aircraft previously used by the East German Army (NVA). The procurement budget was then estimated at around 300 million USD, with deliveries expected by 2024.
On July 6, 2020, the U.S. Department of State approved the sale, valued at up to 380 million USD. Subsequently, on November 13 of the same year, an intergovernmental Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) agreement worth 218 million USD was signed, 30 million USD of which was financed by the U.S. side. Delivery of the first two helicopters was originally scheduled for the end of 2024, but was ultimately delayed by about a year.
Lithuania requested UH-60M Black Hawks in the U.S. Army configuration (USG – United States Government), equipped with Government Furnished Equipment (GFE) and onboard armament consisting of twelve 7.62 mm M240H machine guns with a stock of 38,400 M80 (147 gr) cartridges, along with logistics, maintenance, and training packages.
In 2024, construction was completed on a new hangar at the 1st Air Base in Šiauliai, intended for the storage and servicing of the helicopters. Delivery of the second pair of UH-60Ms is expected in 2026.
Earlier, on January 19, 2023, then–Minister of Defense Arvydas Anušauskas announced the transfer of two Mi-8T helicopters and 40 mm Bofors L/70 anti-aircraft guns to Ukraine.
I have some good news today from 🇱🇹 to 🇺🇦. Lithuanian new lethal support package for 🇺🇦 consist of dozens of L-70 anti-aircraft guns, ammunition and two Mi-8 helicopters. Total value of 🇱🇹 upcoming support package is approximately 125 million euros.
— Arvydas Anušauskas (@a_anusauskas) January 19, 2023
The Lithuanian Armed Forces also operate three Airbus AS365 N3+ Dauphin helicopters, used for search and rescue (SAR) operations and environmental protection missions. Lithuania’s helicopter capabilities are further strengthened by the latest acquisition by the Ministry of the Interior for the State Border Guard Service (Valstybės sienos apsaugos tarnyba, VSAT) – three Airbus H145 multirole helicopters (the first of which was delivered on April 7, 2025). These aircraft join the service’s existing fleet of two Eurocopter EC120 Colibri, two EC135 (H135), and one EC145 (H145).
Elsewhere in Europe, apart from Lithuania, Latvia has also decided to acquire Black Hawks (four UH-60M helicopters, with deliveries starting on December 20, 2022), as well as Slovakia (nine UH-60Ms delivered by January 11, 2020, with plans to purchase another twelve). Beyond this region, other users include Sweden (15 UH-60M + 12 more on order), Austria (12 UH-60M on order to join 8 existing S-70s), Croatia (2 UH-60M + 8 on order), Ukraine (two UH-60A), Albania (three UH-60M), Portugal (six UH-60A and three UH-60L on order), Greece (35 UH-60M on order), and of course Poland (eight S-70i operated by the Special Forces and five S-70i by the Police).
Additionally, several European countries operate the naval MH-60 variant: Denmark (nine MH-60R Seahawks), Norway (six MH-60R on order plus authorization for nine HH-60W Jolly Green II), Spain (eight MH-60R joining twelve SH-60B Seahawks and eight SH-60F Seahawks), and Greece (four aircraft with an option for three more, in addition to eleven older S-70B-6 Aegean Hawks).