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Canadian Defence Procurement — updated and revised January 2004
Politics, Procurement Practices, and Procrastination:
the Quarter-Century Sea King Helicopter
Replacement Saga
Part 5 — Open for Business:
the Contenders for the ‘NSA’ Requirement
Key contenders for the ‘New Shipboard Aircraft Project’ were the Sikorsky S-70 (called the SH-60 by
the US Navy, right), Aérospatiale’s SA332 Super Puma, and EH Industries’ new
EH-101. Of the three candidates, only the last was specifically
designed to be a Sea King replacement.
Should Some Smaller S-70 Sea Hawk Succeed Sikorsky’s Stalwart Sea King?
The S-70 Sea Hawk is a navalized version of the famous US Army UH-60 Black Hawk. The US
Navy operates two models of Sea Hawks – the SH-60F is a direct
replacement for USN SH-3 Sea Kings. Yet another S-70 variant (the HH-60J JayHawk) serves
the US Coast Guard. Since being adopted by the US Navy, Sikorsky’s Sea Hawk has been widely exported
– including to Australia. [1]
Puss in Boots — Aérospatiale’s Revamped ‘Master Cat’ Gets Its Sea
Legs
As the name suggests, Aérospatiale’s Super Puma was the nouvelle génération
of an earlier design [2]. For the NSA, Aérospatiale submitted their maritime Super
Puma, the AS332F (F for Frégate) with the usual naval features such as a folding tail,
‘beartrap’ winch- down equipment, search radar, etc. The result, like the SeaHawk, was a
utility helicopter design adapted to shipboard duties. Critically, the AS 332F was smaller than a Sea King.
The third contender, EH Industries’ EH-101 will be reviewed on the next page.
[1] The RAAF had already bought S-70 Black Hawks to replace their Iroquois. Replacing RAN
Westland Sea Kings with Sea Hawks increased
commonality.
[2] This design, the SA330 Puma, had been devised for the French army by Sud Aviation. Joint
production was undertaken by Westland in Britain for the Royal Air Force. Sud Aviation became a part of
Aérospatiale in 1970 and their original 1965 army utility helicopter design was modernized and fitted
with more powerful engines. The result was the AS332 Super Puma of 1977. The designation AS332 reflected
new owners (AS for Aérospatiale) and the second major design change.
< Part 4 — the New Shipboard Aircraft
(NSA) Project
> Part 6 — Open for Business: the
Contenders for the ‘NSA’ (Continued)
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