LRIP 6 King Stallions
On 31 January 2022, the US Department of Defense (DoD) awarded Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation a contract to build nine additional CH-53K King Stallion heavy lift helicopters at a lower unit price than previous lot buys, resulting in significant savings.
According to the US DoD information, the new contract is a USD 685 million fixed-price incentive modification to a previously awarded contract. This modification exercises options for the production and delivery of nine Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP), Lot 6, CH-53K heavy lift helicopters, as well as associated aircraft programmatic and logistical support. Scramble magazine reported on the Lot 6 option in June 2021.
These Lot 6 King Stallions are part of 200 aircraft programme for the US Marine Corps (USMC) with deliveries beginning in 2025. The aircraft will be built at Sikorsky headquarters in Stratford (CT). The factory is active with seven CH-53K aircraft in build and there are 47 more in various stages of production.
On 24 January 2022, Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 461 (HMH-461) Iron Horses ('CJ-xx') officially became the United States Marine Corps' first squadron to operate the Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion.
According to the Scramble Magazine database the following King Stallions have been allocated:
EDM = Engineering Development Model, SDTA = System Development Test Article
Photo by US Navy