U.A.E. plans helicopter buy

WASHINGTON, June 28 (UPI) -- The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency has notified Congress of a possible sale of Black Hawk helicopters to the United Arab Emirates.

The package deal would include: five UH-60M Black Hawk VIP helicopters; 12 T700-GE-701D engines (10 installed and 2 spares); six AN/APR-39A(V)4 Radar Signal Detecting Sets; 80 AN/AVS-9 Night Vision Devices; six Star Safire III Forward Looking Infrared Radar Systems; six AAR-57(V)3 Common Missile Warning Systems; and six AN/AVR-2B Laser Warning Sets.

Also included would be C406 Electronic Locator Transmitters, Traffic Collision Avoidance Systems and Weather Radars, Aviation Mission Planning Station, government furnished equipment, ferry support, spare and repair parts, publications and technical documentation, support equipment, personnel training and training equipment, ground support, communications equipment, U.S. government and contractor technical and logistics support services, tools and test equipment, and other related elements of logistics support.

The estimated cost is $217 million.

The U.A.E. will use these helicopters for intra-country transportation of U.A.E. officials to militarily critical training and operation sites, the agency said. The UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters would enhance the safety of key U.A.E. personnel by providing for the detection and avoidance of rocket/missile attacks by indigenous or foreign terrorist elements.

The principal contractors would be Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. of Stratford, Conn., and General Electric Aircraft Company of Lynn, Mass.

DSCA said the U.A.E. has requested offsets, but at this time offset agreements are still undetermined and will be defined in negotiations between the purchaser and contractor.