Sikorsky UH-60L Blackhawk helicopter (90-)26292 looked to fly up and land at Rockhampton Airport before returning back down to Gladstone a short time later.
26292 later returned to Rockhampton Airport and took up a parking position adjacent to Runway 04/22.
Fellow Sikorsky UH-60M Blackhawk helicopter (13-)20577 then also flew into Rockhampton Airport also from Gladstone. It was being prepared for an overnight stay.
As mentioned previously, five Boeing AH-64E Apache and eight Sikorsky UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters were unloaded from a ship at the Gladstone Port during the last week. Their rotor blades were re-attached and test flights were conducted before they started flying up to Rockhampton Airport over the weekend.
Research reveals these 13 helicopters are of the 16th Combat Aviation Brigade from Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington State, USA.
The UH-60M Blackhawks are of the 2nd Battalion 158th Aviation Regiment 'Warhawks', while the UH-60L Blackhawks are of the 1st Battalion 52nd Aviation Regiment. The AH-64E Apaches are of the 1st Battalion 229th Aviation Regiment. Altogether, they have formed Task Force 'Tigershark'.
Finally, it's also worth mentioning that as the US Army Blackhawk helicopters arrived into Rockhampton Airport late on Tuesday 2 July, as shown above, so too did Australian Army Sikorsky S-70A-9 Blackhawk helicopter A25-102 which touched down from the South as "Disco 102".
After taking on fuel, it continued further North to Mackay Airport and then Townsville.
Sincere thanks to local plane spotters Daniel B and Trevor H for taking the time to capture and send through these great photos!
Photos taken by Daniel Bishop and Trevor Hardsman ©
No comments:
Post a Comment