Germany to acquire 60 Chinook helicopters in $8.7 billion deal

Europe, News, US July 8, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

Germany is set to buy 60 Chinook helicopters from Boeing along with all the necessary infrastructure, fleet service boats, and airborne vehicles for troops. The deal which is worth up to $8.7 billion (€8 billion) was announced by Germany’s Budget Committee on July 5, 2023.

Germany’s Budget Committee held a meeting to address the country’s military procurement projects. The meeting focused on “three key initiatives to strengthen collaboration with partners and enhance troop capabilities for national and alliance defense”. Procurement of 60 CH-47F Chinook heavy transport helicopters from the U.S. was authorized as one of three initiatives.

Under the latest deal, the German Army, Bundeswehr, will receive the “Block II Standard Range” variant of the Chinook helicopter, which includes the capability for aerial refueling.

Germany has been planning to purchase the Chinook heavy-lift helicopters from Boeing since last year to replace its aging fleet of CH-53 helicopters. Originally, the project was allotted a budget of 6 billion Euros ($6.57 billion), however, the latest procurement deal includes an infrastructure cost as well as other equipment worth more than 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion).

The committee announced that 47 of the 60 helicopters will be based town of Holzdorf, some 50 kilometers south of Berlin, adding that the first of several newly purchased Arrow-3 missile defense systems would also be deployed around the same area.

*^{The U.S. Department of State has approved the sale of CH-47F Chinook helicopters to Germany. (Image Credit: Boeing)}*

The German committee also approved the procurement of 3,058 highly mobile, all-terrain, all-wheel-drive vehicles, along with necessary accessories. “These are highly mobile, all-terrain, and all-wheel-drive wheeled vehicles that will transport soldiers, equipment, armament, ammunition, and material, thus making the airborne forces on the ground more mobile,” the Bundeswehr statement read.

Chinook Block II

Boeing’s H-47 Chinook Block II offers next-generation heavy-lift capabilities for critical future missions.
It is powered by cutting-edge technologies such as redesigned fuel tanks, strengthened fuselage, and improved drivetrain.
Enables soldiers to meet heavy-lift mission requirements and allows for future upgrades.
Enhances readiness for the military operations with increased speed, range, and intelligence.
More than 950 Chinooks are in use across 20 countries, delivering exceptional production, maintenance, and cost efficiencies.

Germany defense budget

Despite being Europe’s largest economy, Germany’s annual defense spending did not meet the NATO threshold of 2% of the annual GDP for several years. However, the war in Ukraine has brought a major transition in German defense policy. Berlin has shifted its focus on military modernization and committed 100 billion Euros to the Bundeswehr, Germany’s armed forces.

Last week, the German cabinet approved the first draft of the 2024 budget. Germany’s upcoming national budget saw an overall decline but defense spending is set to rise by 1.7 billion euros ($1.8 billion) compared to 2023 as Europe’s biggest economy plans to reach a NATO target of spending 2% of gross domestic product on defense next year.

Germany is also expanding its role in NATO. Last month, Germany hosted the largest military exercise in NATO’s history, the Air Defender 2023. More than 250 aircraft and 10,000 personnel from 25 different countries participated in the exercise that concluded on June 23.