Taiwan's Military Bolsters Defense: Eyes More Armed Black Hawks

Army Plans to Acquire Additional Helicopters and Upgrade Existing Fleet for Enhanced Combat Capabilities

The Republic of China (Taiwan) Army is reportedly planning a significant boost to its aerial capabilities, seeking to purchase an additional 30 Sikorsky UH-60 Armed Black Hawk helicopters. Sources with knowledge of the matter, speaking on condition of anonymity, also indicate an interest in upgrading the existing UH-60M Black Hawk fleet, equipping them with advanced weaponry such as Hellfire missiles, rockets, and autocannons.

The army currently possesses a surplus of AGM-114 Hellfire missiles but faces a shortage of platforms capable of deploying them, aside from the Boeing AH-64 Apache, Bell AH-1 Cobra, and Bell OH-58 Kiowa. Although the UH-60 helicopters are the most numerous within the army, they lack the necessary systems to attach and fire these missiles.

Taiwan currently operates 58 Black Hawks in total, with 30 assigned to the army, 14 to the air force, and 14 to the Ministry of the Interior's National Air Service Corps.

The initial purchase of 60 helicopters from the US has been impacted by two crashes. A tragic incident in 2020 resulted in the loss of eight lives, including General Shen Yi-ming (沈一鳴), who was then Taiwan's chief of the general staff.

The army's UH-60Ms are already equipped with the ability to deploy two machine guns. The National Air Service Corps’ craft are equipped with infrared scanning equipment.

The military’s objective is to ensure the army has sufficient helicopter resources in the event of a conflict. Interest in the Armed Black Hawk variant was sparked after Lockheed Martin’s Sikorsky, the manufacturer, released video footage of live-fire exercises conducted by the variant in Arizona last September.

The video showcased the Armed Black Hawk's capabilities, including a pilot equipped with an ANVIS/HUD-24 helmet-mounted display and tracker system. The helicopter in the video featured an electro-optical infrared sensor on the nose, M134 7.62mm mini-guns at each cabin door, a pair of GAU-19 .50 Gatling guns, a 70mm Hydra rocket pod, and a rack of AGM-114 Hellfire missiles.