Sikorsky S-70

Operational history

U.S. Navy

The Navy received the first production SH-60B in February 1983 and assigned it to squadron HSL-41.

The helicopter entered service in 1984, and began its first deployment in 1985

The SH-60F entered operational service on 22 June 1989 with Helicopter Antisubmarine Squadron 10 (HS-10) at NAS North Island.

SH-60F squadrons will shift from the SH-60F to the MH-60S beginning in 2009, they will be redesignated Helicopter Sea Combat (HSC).

The squadron earned the Navy Unit Commendation for exceptionally meritorious service while serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom where they completed more that 1,700 combat flight hours and 900 combat air missions.

The majority of their flights in the Iraqi theater have been supporting special operations ground forces missions, both in urban and rural areas.

The Firehawks have also participated in military operations in urban terrain, and helped with medical and casualty evacuations.


The Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS), HSM-41, received the MH-60R aircraft in December 2005 and has begun training the first set of pilots.

In 2007, the R-model successfully underwent final testing for incorporation into the fleet.

As of August 2008, the first 11 combat-ready examples equipped HSM-71, a squadron assigned to the USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74). According to Lockheed Martin, "secondary missions include search and rescue, vertical replenishment, naval surface fire support, logistics support, personnel transport, medical evacuation and communications and data relay."