US clears possible $425m helicopter sale to Denmark

Denmark has been cleared to buy three Sikorsky MH-60R multi-mission helicopters from the United States, in a proposed deal valued at as much as $425 million. The approval came from the US Department of State, which announced the decision on 22 September.

The package covers the airframes and associated equipment, plus training support for the Danish fleet.

Denmark has also asked for eight embedded GPS and inertial navigation units, of which six would be fitted to aircraft and two held as spares. The units would carry precise positioning service and anti-spoofing features. Three digital magnetic anomaly detection systems are part of the request as well, to be used in anti-submarine work, along with other items that do not fall under major defence equipment categories.

According to the department, the aircraft would strengthen Denmark's existing military operations and widen its coverage of maritime areas it watches, including the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, the North Atlantic and the Arctic.

The department said the sale would advance US foreign policy and national security aims by improving the security of a NATO ally. It also said no extra American personnel would be needed in Denmark as a result, and that US defence readiness would not suffer.

Lockheed Martin, which owns Sikorsky, would also back the sale, with work carried out at Owego in New York state.

The Royal Danish Air Force already operates nine MH-60Rs. Aviation data firm Cirium lists those helicopters as between eight and 10 years old.