Ever thought of a helicopter that is more expensive than a stealth military fighter like F-35? Probably not. But that’s what happened here exactly. A helicopter named CH-53K which is the most advanced, low maintenance, and efficient helicopter ever produced by the US military is actually more expensive than the F-35. According to Army technology, the CH-53K costs about $83.5 million which is much more than F-35 which is worth around $78 million as per Forbes. As previously reported by Task & Purpose, Sikorsky designed the CH-53K to haul up to 27,000 pounds, three times the cargo of the Pentagon’s current heavy-lift workhorse, without any significant changes in the airframe dimensions, a major boon for Marines increasingly fighting downrange and the capability that earned the airframe the title “most powerful.”
Also, one of the most important things is that different countries pre-order the line of US military defense equipment but Israel always gets a free hand on such equipment. This is because a large amount of US armor is being given to the Israeli Army under US military aid program. By following this tradition, the US recently announced to give their 18 CH-53K helicopters to Israel Army. This CH-53K helicopter is also a heavy lifting cargo aircraft, capable of efficient vertical take-offs and landings, and also going on such hilly terrains for transportation purposes where other vehicles can’t have easy access. Also, this thing is worth noticing that the CH-53K is just a mile apart to be on the list of “Advanced Heavy Helicopters” which was a joint heavy and remarkable project by the Russian and Chinese Aviation Industry.
The prevailing reason for this helicopter being more expensive than F-35 is that it uses a glass cockpit, high-quality General Electric turboshaft engines, and expensive airframes as well. “Quite simply, this CH-53K will be able to deploy more personnel and equipment than ever before, at greater altitudes, quicker speeds, and in harsh situations,” Cederholm stated. There is no doubt that these helicopters are high in demand. The Military Sales Program of the US has estimated that there should be sales of around $3.4 billion inclusive of every training and maintenance program. It is an appreciable thing to consider that for the very first time, CH-53K has got orders from foreign countries as well which will enhance the sales program and will also strengthen the strategic ties with the countries.
