DND gets 5 new Black Hawk choppers

Five brand-new Sikorsky S-70i Black Hawk helicopters have been delivered to the Philippines, the first of 16 expected new choppers, the Department of National Defense (DND) said late Monday night. The choppers were delivered from Poland via a Russian Antonov heavy transport plane, the DND said in a statement. A sixth chopper, which could not be accommodated by the Russian plane due to space constraints, is expected to arrive in December aboard a cargo ship. The other 10 helicopters will be delivered in the first quarter of 2021, the DND said. —Patricia Denise M. Chiu