Australia Continues To Arm to The Teeth

 

Australia Spends $2 billion on Black Hawk Helicopters

 Australia has announced it will ditch its fleet of European-designed Taipan military helicopters a decade earlier than scheduled, replacing them with 40 Black Hawk choppers from the United States at an estimated cost of 2.8 billion Australian dollars ($1.97bn).

US manufacturer Lockheed Martin Corp’s UH-60M Black Hawks will replace Australia’s fleet of MRH-90 Taipan helicopters, which have been plagued for years by costly maintenance issues, Defence Minister Richard Marles said on Wednesday.


“We’ve just not got the flying hours out of the Taipan that we would need,” Marles told ABC News. “We’re confident that we can get that from the Black Hawks. It’s a platform we’re familiar with.”

The French government has a significant stake in Airbus – the European aerospace company that manufactures the Taipans – and Paris had been urging Australia to keep its 40-strong fleet.

Marles said he had spoken with his French counterpart several times and was confident the US helicopter deal “won’t interrupt” the renewed relationship with France.

In a statement, Airbus said it “acknowledges” the decision and that Australia remained a key market for the company.

Dropping the Taipans comes as relations between Paris and Canberra had warmed following Australia’s decision in 2021 to ditch French-made submarines for nuclear subs to be built by the United States and the United Kingdom.

The shock move by Australia’s then-conservative government to abruptly rip up the 90-billion-dollar ($62bn) agreement with France for the provision of submarines sparked a bitter diplomatic dispute and relations plummeted.

At the height of the controversy, French President Emmanuel Macron accused Australia’s then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison of lying about the deal, and Paris recalled its ambassador from Canberra.

Marles said he was confident that the helicopter deal would not damage relations with France, which had been somewhat repaired since the submarine row.

 Australia confirmed Wednesday it was following through with a purchase of 40 Black Hawk helicopters from Lockheed Martin. The order signals a move from French to American-made choppers, as Australia's military previously relied on Airbus' Taipan helicopters.
 

A Bird In The Hand

This isn't the first time that Australia has dumped a French defense supplier. In 2021 the Land Down Under decided it needed a new partner for going underwater and ditched a €50 billion contract with French submarine supplier Naval Group. The move came shortly after Australia hatched a diplomatic deal with the US and the UK -- called AUKUS -- aimed at encouraging the three countries to share advanced technologies, a pact that included nuclear submarines. The subtext of the pact was clear: the three countries were banding together to counter China's expanding military strength and ambition.

 

As if France's pride wasn't hurt enough, the deal also called attention to a spate of technical problems surrounding the Taipan helicopters:

    Australia had to ground its entire fleet in 2019 when it found a problem with their tail rotor blades.

    The doors on the Taipans also aren't big enough to let soldiers leave the aircraft while the gun turret is being fired, meaning for some missions you'd need two helicopters instead of just one. Pas ideal!