Sikorsky expands South American support facilities

Sikorsky Aircraft has opened an office in Bogota, Colombia in order to better support the Colombia Armed Forces Black Hawk helicopter fleet. The company will also open its first South American Black Hawk training centre in Melgar, Colombia, in early 2013.

The new Colombian office will provide the Colombian Ministry of Defense with a central, in-country point of contact for managing all aspects of business with Sikorsky including aftermarket support, programme management, and administrative requirements. Sikorsky Areospace Services, the aftermarket business of Sikorsky Aircraft, already operates a Service Depot in Tolemaida, Colombia.

The Colombian Armed Forces have been a Black Hawk operator since 1987, and now the combined air force, army and National Federal Police fleet numbers nearly 100 Black Hawk aircraft - the world’s fourth-largest Black Hawk fleet and the largest procured to date through the US foreign military sales system.

Earlier this year, Sikorsky announced the expansion of its existing maintenance contract that doubles the size of the in-country maintenance support team for the Colombian Army UH-60 Black Hawk fleet. The Colombian Army Aviation – part of the army’s Combined Arms Team – has acquired Scheduled and Unscheduled Maintenance Services for its fleet of UH-60 helicopters to ensure sustained support for operations mandated by the Colombian Army. Forty-two Sikorsky-trained technicians perform Phase Maintenance Inspections and 120-hour inspections at the Aviation Maintenance Base in Tolemaida. The contract is renewable annually.

Scheduled to open in early 2013, the helicopter training facility in Melgar will feature the region’s only full motion, high fidelity, FAA Level D Equivalent Black Hawk simulator. The centre will provide pilot and flight crew training for the Colombian armed services and Sikorsky military customers throughout Latin America.