The Israel Ministry of Defense has placed an order for four new CH-53K King Stallion heavy-lift helicopters for $372 million. In a statement, the U.S. Department of Defense said this modification contract covers an option for the production and delivery of four low-rate initial productions, Lot 6, CH-53K Heavy Lift aircraft, as well as associated aircraft programmatic and logistical support for the government of Israel. In July 2021, the U.S. State Department approved the sale of 18 CH-53K King Stallion helicopters worth $3.4 billion to Israel. The Israel MoD in February last year announced that it chose CH-53K as its next heavy-lift helicopter, over Boeing’s CH-47 Chinook. The new chopper will replace the country’s five decades-old CH-53D Sea Stallion Yasur helicopter. Work is expected to be completed in November 2025. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.
The Israeli Ministry of Defense Mission to the U.S. signed an agreement (LOA) with the US government for the purchase of 12 Lockheed Martin-Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion heavy-lift cargo helicopters. The Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion is a heavy-lift cargo helicopter currently being produced by Sikorsky Aircraft for the United States Marine Corps (USMC). The Government of Israel – Ministry of Defense – Mission to the U.S. is the Israeli Ministry of Defense (MOD) purchasing office located in New York City. The Mission was established to achieve the procurement goals set by the Government of Israel – Ministry of Defense consistent with the regulations of the U.S. Government. The U.S. State Department has approved a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) of 18 examples of the Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion heavy-lift helicopter to the Government of Israel. The total estimated cost is $3.4 billion.
The Government of Israel has requested to buy up to eighteen (18) CH-53K Heavy Lift Helicopters; up to sixty (60) T408-GE-400 Engines (54 installed, 6 spares); and up to thirty-six (36) Embedded Global Positioning System/Inertial Navigation Systems (EGI) with Selective Availability/Anti-Spoofing Module (SAASM). Also included is communication equipment; GAU-21 .50 caliber Machine Guns; Mission Planning System; facilities study, spare parts; test equipment; publications documentation; maintenance training; U.S. Government and contractor engineering, technical, and logistics support services.
The Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion is a heavy-lift cargo helicopter currently being produced by Sikorsky Aircraft for the United States Marine Corps (USMC). The design features three 7,500 hp (5,590 kW) engines, new composite rotor blades, and a wider aircraft cabin than previous CH-53 variants. It will be the largest and heaviest helicopter in the U.S. military. The USMC plans to receive 200 helicopters at a total cost of $25 billion. Ground Test Vehicle (GTV) testing started in April 2014; flight testing began with the maiden flight on 27 October 2015. In May 2018, the first CH-53K was delivered to the Marine Corps. The CH-53K is to surpass the capability of its predecessor by carrying nearly 30% more than the CH-53E’s external payload of 27,000 lb (12,200 kg) over the same radius of 110 mi (204 km). The CH-53K’s payload reaches a maximum of 35,000 lb (15,900 kg). The CH-53K’s maximum gross weight will be 88,000 lb (39,900 kg), which is increased over the CH-53E’s 73,500 lb (33,300 kg). The CH-53K will keep approximately the same footprint as the CH-53E.
