Late October saw the introduction of the newest version of the Black Hawk helicopter. The UH-60M paid a visit to the Pentagon on November 14 to show off its various upgraded technical capabilities.

The “M” model will gradually replace the 25-year-old “L” model and become the US Army’s medium-lift helicopter capable of assault, medevac, and cargo missions, as well as command and control, aerial sustainment, and search and rescue. It will also be looked at as a follow-on helo to special operations units.

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Gene McNeill, who is currently serving as a test pilot and trainer on the “M” model at Sikorsky, has nothing but praise for the new Black Hawk helicopter. Though he has had 20 years of experience on the “L” model, he is impressed by the new technology, particularly the digital avionics suite that makes the aircraft more user-friendly to crew and passengers regardless of mission. He believes that “L” pilots will be able to transition to the “M” without any difficulty.

“With a digital moving map you know exactly where you are with relationship to the earth; it enables you with ease and comfort to navigate, fly and execute your mission a lot better because you also don’t have to do manual calculations; the aircraft’s digital suite makes everything faster and they can be done while the aircraft is on-the-fly,” CWO4 McNeill said.

Another digital advantage “M” pilots will have is the capability of downloading all flight information from an office computer to the Black Hawk’s system via a two-gigabyte PCMCIA card. In addition, the UH-60M has a “threat intervisibility” system, which allows for terrain data and known enemy in the field to be plotted on the map via grid location. The helo also has new seats that will prevent spinal injuries in case of hard landings.

For more on the new UH-60M’s features, visit www.sikorsky.com/details/0,,CLI1_DIV69_ETI2265,00.html.