US Air Force purchases 7 additional MH-139A helicopters

Boeing will build seven Gray Wolf helicopters for the U.S. Air Force, increasing the total number of rotorcraft covered by the contract to 26.

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) has recently placed an order for seven more MH-139A Gray Wolf helicopters from Boeing, marking a significant expansion of its fleet. This order, valued at $178 million, falls within a larger framework agreement that includes 26 rotorcraft.

The military version, which Boeing and Leonardo developed based on Leonardo's AW139 commercial helicopter model, will replace the 59 UH-1N Huey helicopters that the USAF has been purchasing since the early 1970s.

The first eight MH-139A helicopters were delivered in 2021. Due to an issue with the Federal Aviation Administration's airworthiness certification, the USAF has since postponed further helicopter purchases until 2023.

Grey Wolf will complement the nation's nuclear deterrence efforts in accordance with the National Defense Strategy and support U.S. intercontinental ballistic missile missions over Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota, Colorado, and Nebraska.

The USAF and Boeing signed a $3 billion framework agreement in September 2018 that covered 84 products.

Source: Newsroom