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July 19, 2022

Sikorsky delivers King Stallion heavy-lift chopper ahead of schedule

PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED Sikorsky's CH-53K King Stallion heavy-lift helicopter in action.
By Liese Klein

Stratford-based Sikorsky delivered a CH-53K “King Stallion” helicopter ahead of schedule last week, the first aircraft built as part of a 2019 contract with the U. S. Marine Corps.

The heavy-lift CH-53K, designed for long-range flight and transport of troops and vehicles, was the first of a Lot 2 LRIP contract awarded by the U.S. Navy in 2019, and the seventh chopper overall delivered to the fleet. 

The newest King Stallion will be based at Marine Corps Air Station New River in Jacksonville, N.C., joining six others in operation there.

Sikorsky inked another contract with the Marines in February to build nine more King Stallions.

Bill Falk, director of Sikorsky’s CH-53K program, said, “This Connecticut-built CH-53K aircraft is a credit to our employees and their skills embracing digital tools and other advanced technologies to continue the Sikorsky legacy of building modern, safe, reliable rotorcraft.”

The Marines gave final approval to the King Stallion for use in its operations worldwide in April. 

Each King Stallion costs $90-$100 million to build and can lift 36,000 pounds, fly as high as 16,000 feet and transport up to 32 troops or 24 medevac patients at a time.

Sikorsky, a division of Lockheed Martin, expects to build 200 of the helicopters in total, and recently signed a contract with Israel to build 12 King Stallions for that nation’s armed forces under a U.S. Navy Foreign Military Sales agreement.

Contact Liese Klein at lklein@newhavenbiz.com.

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