Practice aerial combat of HH-60 helicopters against F-15 fighters
USA, September 9, 2025 – The HH-60G Pave Hawk and HH-60W Jolly Green II are combat search and rescue versions of the Black Hawk helicopter, of which 9 units, the UH-60M model, were also used by the Slovak military, while another 14 UH-60 helicopters were waiting for delivery. The joint magazine of the United States Air and Space Forces (USAF, USSF) carried an article written by Matthew Cox and entitled “Air Guard Pilots Test HH-60 Helicopters Against F-15 Fighter Attack”.
The article says: “The Air National Guard recently tested for the first time how its new rescue helicopter would survive attacks from enemy fighters in preparation for a potential war in the Pacific. National Guard pilots used electronic countermeasures on an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter and a newer HH-60W Jolly Green II rescue helicopter as an F-15D Eagle fighter jet launched simulated attacks over water. The test was designed to evaluate the helicopters’ defenses in a maritime environment against real-world aerial threats, Air Force officials said.
In February, the 129th Rescue Wing, based at Moffett Air National Guard Base in California, announced it was replacing its Pave Hawk helicopters with six new Jolly Green IIs. The HH-60W is equipped with more powerful engines with increased torque and improved equipment to increase survivability capabilities, such as upgraded radar and missile detection systems.
The HH-60W helicopters that flew in the test were from the 305th Rescue Squadron at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. The F-15D Eagle fighters were from the 144th Fighter Wing at Fresno Air National Guard Base, California. The evaluation was conducted by the Air National Guard Reserve Command (AATC) Test Center. Air Force officials said they would not release specific details about the test due to operational safety concerns.
This is how the HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopter was recently introduced by its manufacturer/system integrator, Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT):
“The recent test was conducted over four days and yielded a significant amount of valuable data,” said a spokesman for the California Air National Guard of the military department. “Since the HH-60W is a new aircraft, this type of evaluation is a necessary step to better understand its performance and capabilities.”
The Guard units conducted tests that would help them transition from the counterinsurgency threats of the past 20 years to “where we’re potentially headed,” which will likely include combat rescue operations in the Pacific against a near-peer (near-peer, the article has a strange typo, the question is whether the correct term can be used with confidence after the Beijing review and, if so, what exactly that means) adversary, the spokesman added.
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This is the first time the HH-60W has undergone this type of evaluation, which “will help us determine how effective U.S. countermeasures are against fighter aircraft over water,” Air Force Lt. Col. Don Smith, deputy director of the HH-60 AATC division, said in a statement.
Electronic countermeasures are designed to disrupt enemy sensors and weapons systems. The test data will inform future training and equipment upgrades aimed at increasing the resilience of rescue helicopters, but AATC did not comment on when the analysis of the test data is expected to be completed.
The Air Force has changed its plans for the HH-60W several times since the helicopter reached its initial operational capability in 2022. It reduced the purchase plan from 113 HH-60Ws to 85 in 2023. Congress added money for 10 more helicopters in 2024 and four more in 2025. The 2026 budget request for the weapon includes enough funds to procure a fleet of 100 HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopters.
A month ago, the U.S. government approved a potential sale of nine HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopters to NATO member Norway for $2.6 billion:
Former Air Combat Command commander Gen. Mark D. Kelly said ACC was considering alternatives to the HH-60W, such as purchasing additional CV-22 Osprey convertibles to handle search and rescue missions beyond the practical range/action radius of the Jolly Green II helicopters. Lt. Col. Terry Parham, director of the HH-60 division at AATC, nevertheless said that the test was a significant opportunity for Air Guardsmen, who must “perform the same critical missions as in active duty, but often have less opportunity for specialized training”.
Max Bach
