Isle Army guard units to get
newest Black Hawk helicopters

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By Gregg K. Kakesako
gkakesako@starbulletin.com

Hawaii Army National Guard and the Pacific Army Reserve will get the newest generation of UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters under the Army's aviation transformation plan.

The Hawaii Army National Guard's aviation unit in Hilo now has four older model Black Hawks, said Maj. Chuck Anthony, National Guard spokesman said, and will begin an upgrade program in November, getting four new models off the assembly line. By spring, four others will be added, giving the Hilo unit eight of the newest Black Hawks. The older models will have to be turned in.

The Pacific Army Reserve is waiting for authorization to obtain eight Black Hawks which could be in the air as early as 2003.

The Army's decision to eliminate 1,000 Vietnam-era helicopters from its active and reserve units will have no effect locally because there are no Cobra gunships and only two UH-1 Hueys in service here.

Only the Hawaii Army National Guard flies Hueys. Anthony said the two Hueys at Wheeler Army Air Field already were on the list to be discarded a few years from now. The 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks phased out its Hueys several years ago.

The Army announced last week that as part of its aviation transformation plan, all AH-1 Cobras will be retired at the end of the year, with the force of UH-1 Hueys gone by 2004. The Hueys will be taken out of service six years sooner than planned.

This will mean the Army fleet will consist of AH-64 Apache helicopters, UH-60 Black Hawks, OH-58 Kiowa Scouts and CH-47 Chinooks.

The Army said it will retire 400 helicopters from the active force and 600 from the National Guard and the Army Reserve.

The Army also will restructure its units so that National Guard and Army Reserve units will focus on airlift missions and the active force will center on attack missions.

Anthony said the Hawaii Army National Guard flies three types of helicopters: Black Hawks, Chinooks and Kiowas.