Korean Navy to buy European chopper instead of American one

by Robert Koehler on January 16, 2013

in Korean Military

The ROK Navy has decided to buy the AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat instead of the Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk.

The Seahawk reportedly outperformed the Wildcat in the evaluation tests, but the Wildcat won on price.

Tagged as: AW159 Wildcat, MH-60R Seahawk

{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }

1 ZenKimchi January 16, 2013 at 3:20 pm: At first I thought you were talking about Harleys.
2 Lan January 16, 2013 at 7:31 pm: haha. the american one looks cooler.
3 Keith January 16, 2013 at 8:16 pm: They’re both good machines by the looks of it. The Linx based helicopter has a long and outstanding pedigree though. If they’re good enough for the SAS and SBS, I’m sure they’re good enough for the ROK Navy.
4 Brendon Carr January 16, 2013 at 8:51 pm: Well, yes and no. The SAS and SBS have to make do with a lot of clapped-out, obsolete shit. If that’s your standard, then sure. Wait until the Argentines grab the Falklands again, then get back to us on the British equipment.
5 Jakgani January 16, 2013 at 9:17 pm: well, considering the USA just ripped off Korea recently with the last military purchase – (airplanes) I guess Korea has to save money somehow.
6 Keith January 16, 2013 at 10:25 pm: Well, Brendon, as the Linx family of helicopters has been around for a while I think it’s a good decision. Parts will be easier to come by and cheaper to obtain, it’s been proven in both combat and as a search and rescue aircraft. If it’s cheaper and gets the job done the Koreans can buy more of them. It used to be the fastest helicopter in the world until a very short time ago. I saw an ace flying one at Farnborough airshow a few years ago, the Linx family of helicopters can do incredible things in the right hands.
7 wangkon936 January 17, 2013 at 1:18 am: Not airplanes. Drones.
8 Wedge1 January 17, 2013 at 11:27 am: Which airplanes? Enlighten us.
9 Wedge1 January 17, 2013 at 11:30 am: It’s Lynx. It’s pretty good, but clearly the MH-60 is better. You get what you pay for.
10 flyingsword January 17, 2013 at 12:22 pm: You get what you pay for, generally speaking.
11 flyingsword January 17, 2013 at 12:24 pm: BTW, Keith, how was the helicopter pilot an ace? Did he shoot down at least 5 other helicopters?
12 Sperwer January 17, 2013 at 12:28 pm: well, considering the USA just ripped off Korea recently with the last military purchase

You mean because of the built-in technology ~~transfer~~ stealth premium?
13 dlbarch January 17, 2013 at 12:45 pm: Well, there could also be a political component here, since it was only
last March when the Royal Navy selected Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine to build a new
fleet of logistics support and tanker vessels for the Royal Fleet
Auxiliary.

DLB
14 wangkon936 January 18, 2013 at 7:00 am: That’s a good point DLB.
15 wangkon936 February 13, 2013 at 1:26 am: Here is more detail:

http://www.eurasiareview.com/11022013-south-koreas-purchase-of-non-us-helicopters-a-turning-point-analysis/

Money shot:

“The eight Lynx Wildcats, to be delivered over a two-year period from 2015, will cost US$560 million, compared to the US$1 billion price tag for the Seahawks. Another factor was Agusta-Westland’s guarantee of industrial technology transfer to South Korea’s defence industry. “