EMBASSY
PHL NOW LEADS WORLD IN BLACK HAWKS
Polish-built Black Hawks are deepening defense ties between Manila and Warsaw as the Air Force expands its transport and rescue capability.
The Philippine Air Force has completed its acquisition of 32 additional S-70i Black Hawk helicopters, making the Philippines the largest operator of the aircraft in the world.
The final seven helicopters were formally accepted at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City, completing the P32-billion deal signed with Polish manufacturer PZL Mielec in 2022.
The latest delivery brings the Air Force’s Black Hawk fleet to 47.
PZL Mielec has delivered a total of 48 S-70i Black Hawks to the Philippines under two contracts. One helicopter from the first order crashed during a night-flying training exercise in June 2021.
The Philippines first ordered 16 Black Hawks from PZL Mielec in 2019. Those aircraft were delivered from 2020 to 2021 for P11.5 billion.
The government then ordered another 32 helicopters in 2022. Ten were delivered in 2024, another 10 in 2025, five in January 2026 and the final seven in August.
PZL Mielec said the 32-aircraft deal was the largest single Black Hawk order it had received since it began producing the S-70i in Poland in 2009.
With 48 aircraft delivered under the two contracts, the Philippines has also become the world’s largest S-70i operator.
The Air Force said the new helicopters will be immediately deployed for missions.
They can be used to transport troops and personnel, carry out search-and-rescue and medical evacuation missions, and deliver aid during typhoons, earthquakes and other disasters. They are also used for military and security operations.
The S-70i Black Hawks supplied to the Philippines are built and tested at PZL Mielec’s plant in Poland.