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MH/HH-60G Pavehawk modifications


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I've been doing research on a potential build of either GATOR 07 or SKAT 13 of the 55th Special Operations Squadron during Operation Allied Force and came across a bunch of information that I feel would be useful here. The information is scattered throughout the site but hopefully this thread will compile it all in one place for reference.

This does not include the CREDIBLE HAWK UH-60A/HH-60D variants.

The first MH-60Gs went into service in 1987 with the 55th Special Operations Squadron at Eglin AFB, FL. This variant was essentially a UH-60A painted in European One with straight exhaust cans, offset color weather radar, refueling probe, and a folding stabilator. No external hoist was installed. The original test aircraft did not have the ESSS fairings installed. Armament was provided internally by M240 machine guns or 7.62mm miniguns. The RWR antennas were located on the nose and under the stabilator supplemented by a single M130 chaff bucket on the LH aft fuselage. IRCM was provided by an ALQ-144; no flare system was equipped. Prominent external antennas included VHF homing antennas behind the cockpit doors, the HF "towel-rack" antenna along the tail boom, and a SATCOM antenna behind the ALQ-144.

DF-ST-88-08062.jpeg

DF-ST-88-08390.jpeg

The 55th SOS deployed to Operation Desert Storm with their MH-60Gs. These aircraft were painted in the ubiquitous three-color desert camouflage and were equipped with HIRSS, external hoist, and possessed the ESSS fairings. Due to the IR-SAM threat these aircraft received the BULLDOG modification which included two downward facing M130 flare buckets in addition to the sole M130 chaff bucket. No other Air Force H-60 unit would carry the BULLDOG configuration until the late 1990s. These aircraft were test fit with a cabin floor mounted .50 caliber machine gun but I cannot find any evidence of it being used operationally.

mh-60g_1.jpg

88-26011_1.jpg

The first HH-60s delivered to the Air Force went to Nellis AFB. They received stock UH-60A aircraft painted European One camouflage while they were standing up the unit. These aircraft were not equipped with a SATCOM antenna, probe, or external hoist.

DF-ST-94-00581.jpeg

Other units received the HH-60G very close to the test configuration. Some aircraft had HIRSS and/or ESSS fairings, others did not. All were painted in European One camouflage.

DF-ST-93-04900.jpeg

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The HH-60Gs were all standardized with an external hoist, HIRSS, and ESSS fairings by 1994-5. Sometime in the mid-1990s all MH/HH-60s were equipped with a bar below the right cabin window to prevent the hoist cable from being frayed on the cabin floor lip.

DF-ST-98-04883.jpeg

Edited by Clinstone
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In 1993 all AFSOC MH-60Gs were repainted to “AFSOC Gray”. These aircraft were fitted with an AN/AAQ-16 FLIR and a PLS antenna on the bottom of the fuselage between the landing gear. No markings except for the “USAF” and the 5-digit tail number were present on the aircraft. Some aircraft were tested with the “snoopy-nose” placement for the color weather radar modeled after the MH-60L. Many were assigned to the 55th Special Operations Squadron following testing.

DN-SC-93-04313.jpeg

The MH-60Gs that deployed in Operation Allied Force very similar to this configuration except the VHF homing antenna behind the pilot doors were removed and the PLS antenna was upgraded to a dual-blade model. GATOR 07 and SKAT 13 were the “snoopy-nose” variants. The 55th SOS was deactivated shortly after returning from OAF. Their aircraft were sent to Nellis AFB with the 66th Rescue Squadron.

EDIT TO ADD: 87-26009 was GATOR 07

mh60g_03.jpg

In the mid-1990s, HH-60s started to receive the AAQ-16 FLIR and the SH-60 “frameless” cockpit windows. A lack of available FLIR units meant that not all aircraft were equipped with them although they were fitted for it. In addition the “regular” Air Force HH-60s started to receive the BULLDOG defensive system upgrades in the late 1990s. From this point forward there would be no difference between the MH-60G and HH-60G.

DF-SD-02-06783.jpeg

DF-SD-01-05913.jpeg

Edited by Clinstone
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Just after the turn of the century the HH-60 received the Improved Electronic War Suite (IEWS) and started the “Block 152 Upgrade.” For the next few years nearly every aircraft was in varying states of modification. The upgrades are noted in the image below but included:

-Moving the rear RWR antennas to the tail fin

-Addition of AAR-47 MWS sensors to the tail fin and sponsons. These were later moved to the nose after testing revealed that the location that the SOAR picked out was superior.

-Addition of two aft-upward facing chaff buckets on each side of the tail boom in “do-all” brackets

-Addition of two front-down facing flare buckets on each side of the tail boom in “do-all” brackets

-Addition of two front-down facing flare buckets on each sponson aft of the MWS sensor in “do-all” brackets

-Moved the navigation lights from the sponson to the ESSS pylon. IR position lights were also added to the varying locations on the aircraft

-Removed “towel-rack” antenna and cockpit VHF homing antennas

-Added upper UHF/VHF antenna above the APU exhaust and whip antenna to tail pylon

-Added external gun mounts and ammunition boxes

Block152upgradeHH-60G.jpg

hh60-035rs.jpg

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DF-SD-05-03137.jpeg

Here’s an aircraft with the nose mounted MWS sensors but internal guns

DF-SD-06-11263.jpeg

DF-SD-05-09358.jpeg

Edited by Clinstone
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From what I have found it seems as though the aircraft stationed in Keflavik received the modifications last or close to it. Here is a picture from 2004 and the aircraft are nearly identical to OSW/ONW aircraft in 1996.

DF-SD-05-08554.jpeg

Even when they were modified they sometimes flew “naked”. This picture shows all countermeasure buckets are removed as well as the external gun mounts.

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During the invasion of Iraq in 2003 the 301st RQS repainted a couple of their aircraft in a desert camouflage scheme. These aircraft had a partial 152 upgrades with the towel-rack antenna, sponson MWS sensors, and internal mini-guns.

DF-SD-05-05647.jpeg

DF-SD-05-05649.jpeg

Completed Block 152 upgrade

DF-SD-06-11259.jpeg

Edited by Clinstone
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In 2003 CSAR moved from ACC to AFSOC. The aircraft were still known as HH-60s but flew under an AFSOC patch. Also around this time all aircraft were repainted in the current dark grey as they went through depot level maintenance but it was not related to the AFSOC switch.The ESSS fairing position lights were added to a location behind the wire strike protector on the top of the helicopter in front of the main mast in the mid-2000s after the gunners complained of NVG washout. A second set of LED position lights were moved under the sponson and had a shield installed to reduce glare. A data-link antenna was installed midway down the tail boom starting in the late 2000s.

hh-60-pave-hawk_2784115b.jpg

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The latest external upgrades for the aircraft are the replacement of the data-link and SATCOM antenna with an “egg-beater” type and the replacement of the upper UHF antenna with a different blade antenna as part of the Advanced Communications Suite Upgrade (ACSU). This is currently only on the ANG/AFRES aircraft but all will be getting the upgrade in the next couple years.

1000w_q95.jpg

Edited by Clinstone
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Here is a photo of four 55th SOS MH-60Gs folded and ready for transport in 1991. 87-26011 has been repainted to European One from the three-tone desert scheme that it sported six months earlier.

1262412842.jpg

Cool pic! It is interesting since it shows helo that now have the snoopy nose with the side mounted radar.

I don't know what the snoopy nose radar offers that the side mounted radar does not. I figure the MH-60s got upgraded after Desert Storm then?

mason

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From what I have heard it was an attempt to incerase the new FLIR field of regard and decrease the chances of messing up the radar landing somewhere rough. Obviously it didn't work that much better because not all aircraft were modified.

The FLIR in the Pavehawk is mostly slaved to the navigation system and used for obstacle avoidance and cueing for brownout landings, not for surveillance.

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  • 11 months later...

The 82nd CAB was stationed at Pope AFB for awhile before we moved to Simmons AAF. When one of the HH-60's crashed at Pope one day, they put the wreckage in the hangar next to ours.

I walked over and went into it one day, and it was somber. Pieces of what was left of a hawk and pieces stuffed into 55 gal drums. Hard to believe it was a big long Blackhawk helicopter at one time.

 

Tim

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On 11/30/2016 at 12:13 PM, italycrew said:

Hello Clintstone, thank you for all news about the Pave Hawk. Wich is the FS color that is used currently? Thank in advance,Roberto 

The actual color is called AFSOC Gray.  I don't know an FS # for it.  The closest model color is Testor's Model Master Gunship Gray (FS36118).

Edited by HeavyArty
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  • 3 years later...
On 2/3/2020 at 11:34 AM, Clinstone said:

Thread Revival:

 

Deployed HH-60Gs are now outfitted with the AN/AAQ-45 DAIRCM (Distributed Aperture Infrared Countermeasures) in place of the AAR-47s on the nose and tail. 

 

82271094_10158146343983120_3770058795632

 

Interesting.   Are they also getting fitted a DIRCM type system as well?

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