The Malaysian Armed Forces has called off a plan to buy four UH-60A Black Hawk helicopters following its king’s warning over safety, according to local media.
The decision came a day after Kuala Lumpur’s monarch and head of state, Sultan Ibrahim ibni Sultan Iskandar, called the three-decade-old systems “flying coffins” and urged officials not to repeat past procurement mistakes.
“I believe that all of this happens because the defence ministry is full of agents or former generals who have become salesmen,” the supreme commander said in a social media post before the latest announcement. “We even have textile firms wanting to sell us drones.”
“If we have to follow the middleman’s (inflated) price in every procurement, then the existing allocation won’t be sufficient,” he added. “So don’t try to fool me. If you don’t want to listen to me, I won’t reprimand you anymore after this.”
Bid for Helicopter Re-Opens
Armed Forces Chief Gen. Tan Sri Mohd Nizam Jaffar explained that the cancellation was accomplished through a royal decree, and a new tender for utility helicopters has already been issued.
The leasing contract last year on four Black Hawks for the Malaysian Army Air Corps, valued at 187 million Malaysian ringgit ($44.2 million), was issued a termination notice after the selected supplier, Aerotree Defence & Services, missed an extended delivery deadline on October 30.
The new five-year lease tender with the same price tag was published in early August and closes on September 26.
While not confirmed, the UH-60 Black Hawk is still expected to be included in this revised request.
The UH-60A Black Hawk
Produced by Lockheed Martin subsidiary Sikorsky Aircraft, the UH-60A Black Hawk can carry up to 11 troops and be armed with heavy machine guns, miniguns, rockets, or other light armaments for escort roles.
It measures 64 feet (20 meters) long, has a rotor diameter of 54 feet (16 meters), and is fitted with twin General Electric T700-GE-700 turboshaft engines with about 1,600 horsepower each.
The helicopter flies up to 19,000 feet (5,791 meters), has a speed of more than 150 knots (173 miles/278 kilometers per hour), and a range of 320 nautical miles (368 miles/592 kilometers).
