Lorenzana, Polish firm inks contract for 32 Black Hawk choppers

MANILA, Philippines — Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Tuesday signed the contract for the purchase of the Polish-made 32 additional S70i Black Hawk helicopters.

Both Lorenzana and Janusz Zakrecki, PZL Mielec president, signed the contract during a ceremony held at the Department of National Defense (DND) Building in Camp Aguinaldo.

“This is a continuing relationship between our countries. The Philippine Air Force is very happy with the Black Hawk helicopters,” Lorenzana said in a speech.

The 32 units also come with an integrated logistics support and training package for pilots and maintenance crew, according to the DND.

The Defense chief earlier said the government earmarked P32 billion to purchase the new helicopters manufactured by Polish-aerospace PZL Mielec, a subsidiary of American firm Lockheed Martin.

The first batch of the choppers will arrive in 2023.

READ: 1st batch of additional 32 Black Hawk choppers to arrive in 2023 — Lorenzana

“I think we will not be here anymore to receive these helicopters, but nonetheless, we will be happy to see the improvement of the capability of the Philippine Air Force,” Lorenzana added.

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