Vertical Flight

HUNTSVILLE, AL -- The Army's aviation branch is "in a relatively healthy posture right now," thanks in part to congressional appropriations, but like the rest of the force is shifting its focus toward a potential near-peer adversary, according to the branch chief.

The Army on March 22 awarded Airbus $116.9 million for procurement of 16 UH-72 Lakota helicopters, according to a Defense Department announcement, obligating nearly $58.5 million in FY-16 funds at the time of the award.

The head of U.S. Strategic Command told the Senate Armed Services Committee this week he's no longer concerned about the legacy UH-1N Huey fleet's ability to last until replacements are ready because the Air Force upgraded the helicopters over the past year.

A half-billion-dollar reduction in aircraft procurement funding in the Army's fiscal year 2019 budget request is "a slight dip in one year," not evidence of a diminished commitment to the branch, according to the director of aviation on the Army staff.

The Army's fiscal year 2019 budget request includes increased research, development, test and evaluation funding to support the efforts of the cross-functional teams pursuing senior leaders' six modernization priorities.

The Pentagon's independent operational test and evaluation office has warned the Navy its CH-53K heavy-lift helicopter is unlikely to meet the service's goal of declaring initial operational capability in December 2019, becoming the second office to do so.

The Army has received congressional approval for the final disposition of AH-64 Apaches from the Army National Guard, which will retain four of its eight attack reconnaissance battalions.

After a nine-month rotational deployment to Europe demonstrated navigational challenges for Army aviation, the service has moved to find an interim solution.

Lawmakers dropped a provision from the fiscal year 2018 defense policy bill that would have allowed the defense secretary to let the Air Force issue a sole-source procurement contract instead of continuing an open competition to replace the Bell UH-1N helicopter.