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| Ukraine Receives 3 Westland WS-61 Sea King Anti-Submarine Helicopters |
Kiev - Ukraine received the assistance of 3 units of anti-submarine helicopters from the UK to deal with Russian forces. This is the first British manned weapons system to be delivered to support the Ukrainian armed forces.
According to The Times, the three anti-submarine warfare helicopters are the Westland WS-61 Sea King from the British Royal Navy inventory. One of the three helicopters has been delivered to Ukraine and is being prepared for operational combat capability. The delivery of these three helicopters is part of a new package of military aid from London to Kiev.
In this aid package, apart from three helicopters, the other weapons provided were 10,000 artillery shells. Although the helicopters are part of the Royal Navy's inventory, they were decommissioned nearly four years ago. This helicopter has been discontinued, but is still selling for around $6 million.
Several Ukrainian pilots have successfully qualified and received certificates to operate these helicopters. Training takes place in recent months and lasts at least six weeks.
According to The Times, ten Ukrainian aircrews were trained to fly the Westland WS-61 Sea King. This helicopter is perfectly suited to perform several functions. In addition to reconnaissance and participation in combat operations, helicopters are well suited for search and rescue. The Westland WS-61 Sea King helicopter is manufactured under license by the American Sikorsky S-61 helicopter. This helicopter has participated in several major conflicts, such as the Falklands War, Persian Gulf War, Balkan Conflict and Iraq War.
Overall there are around 350 Westland WS-61 Sea King helicopters produced. Apart from England, Germany and India are also operators of the Westland WS-61 Sea King. The helicopter crew consists of two or four people.
Quoted from the BulgarianMilitary website, Thursday (24/11/2022), this helicopter is powered by two Rolls-Royce H.1400-2 Gnome turboshaft engines, each producing 1,660 hp (1,240 kW). Its cruising speed is 207 km/h (maximum cruising at sea level) and its range is 1,230 km. The Sea King helicopter armament consists of four torpedoes, which can be either Mark 44, Mark 46, or Sting Ray torpedoes, or a 4× Depth payload, which is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon.