Airbus Lakota Helicopters Log Record 1.5M Flight Hours of US Military Service

The UH-72 Lakota helicopter has rapidly logged flight hours in various missions for the U.S. Army, U.S. Army National Guard and U.S. Navy, accumulating more than 1.5 million flight hours as of July 17, according to the aircraft’s manufacturer, Airbus U.S. Space & Defense. 

Robert Geckle, the company’s chairman and CEO, described the milestone as an “incredible achievement,” reflecting the helicopter’s dependability during its past 18 years of service, Geckle, a 4×24 member and  Wash100 winner, noted that Lakota achieved 1 million flight hours just less than three years ago, and the new milestone further underscores its reliability, Airbus said Wednesday.   

The Lakota comes in nearly 10 different versions, with over 480 aircraft delivered for missions across 50 U.S. states and territories, including training, counter-drug operations and search and rescue.

The Army procured the first Lakota helicopters in 2006, and it currently uses 223 UH-72As for pilots’ primary training. In August 2023, Airbus secured a $27.8 million contract to upgrade the mission equipment package of the Lakota helicopters used by the  Army’s National Guard Security & Support Battalion.

The U.S. Naval Test Pilot School also trains aviators on rotary wing flying through the Lakota aircraft.