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The Pennsylvania National Guard at Fort Indiantown Gap received its first delivery of UH-60V Black Hawk helicopters, the latest version of the iconic aircraft, on July 27.

The Guard’s Eastern Army National Guard Aviation Training Site (EAATS) says it will use the choppers to conduct local training of Black Hawk aviators, crew, and mechanics.

The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-blade, twin-engine helicopter that first entered service with the Army in 1979. Since then, Black Hawks have seen combat duty in Grenada, Panama, Iraq, Somalia, the Balkans, Afghanistan, and the Middle East.

Black Hawks are also flown by the Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and over a dozen U.S. allies.

The UH-60V was developed to replace the aging UH-60A/L fleet. The “V” model includes a modern digital cockpit, the latest GPS technology, and advanced flight planning and mission capability.

“EAATS will provide initial qualification in a ‘train-the-trainer’ fashion,” said Lt. Col. Tim Zerbe, Pennsylvania’s state Army aviation officer. “This process enables unit instructor pilots, standardization pilots and maintenance examiners to get trained and then take that knowledge back to their units in order to train others.”

EAATS is a U.S. Army training institution located at FTIG’s Muir Army Airfield. It conducts individual aviator qualification training, enlisted aviation training, and non-commissioned officer professional development.

EAATS’s utility helicopter mission focuses on UH-60M/V training for aircraft mechanics and crewmembers from the Army National Guard, active-duty Army, Army Reserve, and foreign militaries.

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Chris Coyle writes primarily on government, the courts, and business. He retired as an attorney at the end of 2018, after concentrating for nearly four decades on civil and criminal litigation and trials. A career highlight was successfully defending a retired Pennsylvania state trooper who was accused,...