MH-60 Multi-Mission / Special Operations Aircraft
The primary mission of the MH-60 is to conduct overt or covert infiltration, exfiltration, and resupply of special operations forces across a wide range of environmental conditions. An armed version, the Direct Action Penetrator (DAP), has the primary mission of armed escort and fire support. Secondary missions of the MH-60 include external load, CSAR and MEDEVAC operations. The MH-60 is capable of operating from fixed base facilities, remote sites, or ocean going vessels.
The MH-60G Pave Hawk is a twin-engine medium-lift helicopter operated by the Air Force Special Operations Command, a component of the US Special Operations Command. The Army's 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) operates three versions of the Black Hawk helicopter: MH-60K (Black Hawk), MH-60L, and MH-60L Direct Action Penetrator (DAP).
The Helicopter Master Plan is a major Navy initiative to modernize and consolidate the helicopter fleet by reducing the number of models and replacing them with MH-60 variants. The MH-60S will replace Boeing's H-46, Bell Helicopter Textron's H-1, and Sikorsky's H-3 and HH-60H helicopters. The MH-60R, which performs undersea warfare and anti-surface warfare, will replace the existing fleet of Sikorsky SH-60B and SH-60F helicopters.
