Australia retires Taipan helicopter fleet after crash incidents

Asia-Pacific, News October 1, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

The Australian military has decided to retire its fleet of 47 Taipan helicopters earlier than the expected date after the crash incident and frequent complaints of technical faults. The helicopters have been in service since 2004.

Australia’s Defense Minister Richard Marles announced that the fleet of MRH-90 Taipan helicopters, which was originally planned to be retired in December 2024, would not return to service. Australia’s plans to replace Taipan helicopters with the U.S.-made UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters.

The latest of Australia’s helicopter crash involving a Taipan came earlier this year. A Taipan helicopter was involved in a joint military drill between the United States and Australian forces and was reported missing after the helicopter crashed into the sea off the coast of Queensland in Australia, on July 28, 2023. The whole fleet of 47 helicopters was immediately grounded following the crash and has been grounded since then.

The Australian defense minister said in a statement, “Today’s announcement does not presuppose or in any way suggest the outcome of the investigations into the tragic incident.” Marles further highlighted that “The government’s highest priority is the safety and well-being of our people.”

Australian Navy MRH-90 helicopter — ^{A Royal Australian Navy sailor is lowered to the casing of HMAS Collins from an MRH-90 Maritime Support Helicopter while sailing in the Bay of Bengal during AUSINDEX 2019. (Image Credit: Royal Australian Navy)}

Replacement on the way

The news about the retirement of the problematic helicopters came only a month after the U.S. approved the Australian Defense Force’s request to buy $1.94 billion worth of 40 U.S.-made Black Hawk helicopters.

The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced the approval of the sale through an official statement on August 24, 2023.

The statement said, “The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Australia of UH-60M Black Hawk Helicopters and related equipment for an estimated cost of $1.95 billion. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale today.”

The deal was initiated by Former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison who announced it in March 2022. He said that his government would spend $19 billion to expand the country’s defense capabilities, especially in the wake of China’s increasing military might in the Indo-Pacific region.

*^{A pair of UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters assigned to Joint Task Force-Bravo’s 1st Battalion 228th Aviation Regiment provide aviation support during Operation Serpiente. (Image Credit: U.S. Army)}*

MRH-90 Taipan

First purchased in 2004, the helicopters were favored by the Australian government due to their lower prices compared to the U.S.-made Black Hawk helicopters. However, the MRH-90 Taipan helicopters have been plagued by controversy for much of their service.

The Taipan is an Australian variant of the NH-90 helicopter; a European-made medium-sized, twin-engine, multi-role military helicopter developed by NH Industries. The helicopter was made to cater to the NATO requirements for a battlefield helicopter.

Taipan has a long history of problems

The Australian Army helicopter involved in the crash has a long history of technical problems. The latest crash is the second time in a few months that the Australian military was forced to ditch a Taipan helicopter in the sea.

In March 2023, a similar incident involving the MRH-90 Taipan helicopter resulted in two injuries. It was concluded that the helicopter was put down in the waters due to an engine failure. Following the crash in March, the Australian army grounded a fleet of 47 MRH-90 Taipan helicopters.