Flying Skulls last Pave Hawk send-off
On 3 December 2024, the 512th Rescue Squadron, part of the 58th Special Operations Wing at Kirtland AFB (NM), send-off their last operational Sikorsky HH-60G Pave Hawk.
On the above mentioned date, HH-60G 92-26468, the last in the inventory of the 512th Rescue Squadron 'Flying Skulls' flew as "Skull01" towards the 309th Aerospace Maintenance And Regeneration Group at Davis-Monthan AFB near Tucson (AZ). The departure marked the final step in the unit's transition from the Pave Hawk to the HH-60W Jolly Green II, which first arrived at Kirtland in December 2020.
The roots of the HH-60G’s service at Kirtland date back to 20 February 1981, when Military Airlift Command (MAC) issued Statement of Operational Need 02-81, identifying a requirement for new helicopters to augment special operations and personnel recovery forces, as a replacement for the Sikorsky HH-3 Jolly Green Giant. Initially, MAC chose to acquire and reconfigure a collection of UH-60A Black Hawks from the US Army.
The first HH-60s at Kirtland AFB, tail numbers 81-23643 and 81-23646, arrived in 1990. These were former UH-60As that underwent conversion to the MH-60G configuration, possessing stronger engines and transmission systems. They were joined shortly thereafter by UH-60Ls that became the base model for full HH-60G conversions. These updated helicopters became designated as HH-60Gs by 1995.
Kirtland’s HH-60Gs have been involved in assisting civilian authorities in several local Search And Rescue (SAR) missions. Altogether, the HH-60G fleet participated in 40 local search and rescue missions, and have been credited with 23 saves. The final HH-60G initial qualification graduate completed training earlier this year on 11 July.
In total, the HH-60G programme graduated over 1.773 pilots, 525 flight engineers, 377 aerial gunners, and 678 Special Missions Aviators. Another 6.518 HH-60G crew members completed refresher training on the 58th Special Operations Wing's simulator assets.
512th RQS's/58th SOW’s Pave Hawk Graduates have served all over the world and in numerous conflicts, reflecting the intensive, high-quality training conducted by Kirtland’s dedicated instructors, creating a legacy of excellence that will long be remembered in the history of the USAF.
Credit photos: USAF