On Wednesday, April 15, 2026, during the three-day Army Aviation Association of America (AAAA) conference at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel & Convention Center in Nashville, Tennessee, Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation (part of Lockheed Martin) unveiled a new armed variant of the H-60/S-70 Black Hawk helicopter family, designated the Armed Black Hawk.
Image and photo: Lockheed Martin
The new configuration, which is an upgrade package for UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, is intended to enable strike missions, close support of ground forces, medical evacuation, reconnaissance and surveillance, as well as tactical transport.
“The new Armed Black Hawk kits give warfighters one aircraft that can do it all: a single, versatile, combat-proven platform where ground units can quickly switch out the commercially-produced kits, keeping mission readiness high,” said Sikorsky Vice President and General Manager Rich Benton. “Offering these upgraded kits is another example of our commitment to delivering 21st Century Security solutions that deliver unmatched performance, lifecycle savings and gives soldiers the reliable, interoperable capability they need to win today and tomorrow.”
Armed Black Hawk kits are offered in two ready-made configurations for strike missions or close support of ground forces, with the option of adding the other capabilities mentioned above. Reconfiguring the mission modules on the removable wings with weapon pylons is expected to take no more than three hours.
The kits are available under the U.S. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program through the Department of Defense or under the Direct Commercial Sale (DCS) program from the PZL Mielec facility in Poland.
MILMAG Commentary:
The armed version of the Black Hawk is nothing new in the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation portfolio. Since 1993, the Colombian Air Force has introduced armed AH-60L Arpía helicopters into service (12 aircraft in total, later upgraded to the Arpía II, III, and IV standards), developed in cooperation with the Israeli company Elbit Systems. This is an assault variant intended for counterterrorism and counterinsurgency (COIN) operations, equipped with upgraded avionics, a fire-control system, a FLIR (Forward-Looking Infrared) turret, radar, light rockets, and machine guns.
Another was the AH-60L Battle Hawk, unsuccessfully offered to Australia under the Project AIR 87 modernization program, in which the EC665 Tiger ARH was selected. It was similar to the AH-60L Arpía III. Sikorsky also offered the armed Battlehawk export version in the form of weapon and upgrade kits. The armed Black Hawk demonstrator was fitted with a 20 mm cannon and various guided missiles. The United Arab Emirates ordered Battlehawk kits in 2011 for 23 UH-60Ms, with the public unveiling taking place in 2019.
At present, Sikorsky is working on the integration of U.S. Army UH-60Ms with various types of unmanned aerial vehicles, which will be carried on the weapon pylons mounted under the aforementioned wings.
We're extending the role of the Black Hawk into new mission sets including airmobile assault, close support, medical evacuation, ISR and tactical lift, in a single, battle-tested airframe.
— Sikorsky (@Sikorsky) April 15, 2026
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