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Latin American countries express interest in former Marine Corps Sea Knights
28 March 2012 - 8:18
Three Latin American nations have expressed interest in purchasing former US Marine Corps (USMC) CH-46 Sea Knights, it has been revealed.
The aircraft, which are being retired to the boneyard by the marines in favour of the V-22 Osprey, have been subjected to a series of upgrades prior to retirement because of the Osprey's late introduction.
The upgrades have given the Sea Knights increased airframe life making them ideal candidates for refurbishment and new roles overseas.
'Although it hasn't got the capability of the CH-47 Chinook, the CH-46 is still a very capable helicopter for troop transport and search and rescue, particularly with its tandem-rotor stability,'
said Earl Godby, head of business development for maintenance, modifications and upgrades at Boeing Defense.
'The marines spent $1.2 billion upgrading the fleet and there is still plenty of life left in them, most of them have around 10,000 hours on them but they have a 17,000 hour airframe life.'
Godby said that despite the type's age, the aircraft are still achieving serviceability levels of in excess of 80%.
Several Sea Knights have already been refurbished and modified by the US Navy's Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) for use by the US State Department Air Wing, although Boeing has not been involved in this project.
Boeing would however be involved if a request was made through the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) scheme for the type.
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