One of the three former Royal Navy Westland Sea King helicopters donated to Ukraine has made its debut in less than two months.
Ukraine’s defense minister, Oleksii Reznikov, tweeted a video of a Sea King helicopter being used near the Black Sea.
The Ukrainian national colors of blue and gold, along with an aviation roundel, can be seen proudly displayed on a former Royal Navy search and rescue helicopter in the brief video.
At the close of 2022, the UK Ministry of Defense (MOD) donated the Westland Sea Kings. The Royal Navy trained ten crews for the Ukrainian military. The MOD confirmed that Sea King aircraft engineers were among those trained.
British forces have used this helicopter for anti-submarine warfare, search and rescue missions, general duties, and transporting Royal Marines commandos to the battlefield in the Falklands, the Balkans, Africa, and Asia, such as Afghanistan.
Author’s Comment:
Sea King helicopters have Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) capabilities. They could also be used against Russian submarines in the Black Sea Fleet if they were supplied with torpedoes and dipping sonar. Although conceptually it is hard for this kind of helicopters to operate without an ASW-capable warship, they can be operated in ASW roles near Odessa and close to the Ukrainian mainland alone under the air cover of S-300 batteries and the Ukrainian Air Force. In these regions, currently, Russia does not have sea control. If the Ukrainian corvette Ivan Mazepa, built in Turkey, can be delivered after sea trials this year, Sea Kings could operate based on it. Particularly, if Russia abandons the Black Sea Grain initiative, ASW helicopters would be of utmost significance for Ukraine. Ukraine has deployed UAVs and anti-ship missiles against Russian surface vessels but no weapons against Russian submarines to deter them from attacking grain ships.