Lockheed delivers final Seahawk helicopter for Australia

OSWEGO, N.Y., Aug. 1 (UPI) -- Lockheed Martin has delivered the 24th and final MH-60R Seahawk helicopter for the Royal Australian Navy under a foreign military sales contract, the company announced.

The helicopter was delivered to the U.S. Navy en route to its Australian counterpart and marked official transfer of ownership of the final helicopter, Lockheed said in a statement.

Australia chose the MH-60R "Romeo" Seahawk in June 2011 to fulfill the Australian military's requirement for a fleet of 24 next-generation, multi-role naval combat aircraft.

Aside from its anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare capabilities, it can conduct search and rescue, vertical replenishment, naval surface fire support, logistics support, personnel transport and medical evacuation.

The new MH-60Rs are replacing Australia's S-70B-2 Seahawks.

The sale to Australia marked the first international sale of a U.S. Navy MH-60R, Lockheed said.

Australia took delivery of its first mission-ready aircraft in 2014.

The 24 Seahawks cost more than $2.2 billion, Australia's navy said.