WASHINGTON — While briefing the public on how a rescue operation for a downed F-15 pilot in Iran played out, President Donald Trump made sure to shout out a specific part of America’s arsenal: the HH-60W, the US Air Force’s latest combat rescue helicopter.
Trump called the Jolly Green II a “fabulous machine” during a Monday presser, adding that the operation was “amazing.” An Air Force spokesperson told Breaking Defense that this was the first time the helicopter was used in combat to retrieve an operator behind enemy lines, although the rotorcraft has been used in “civil rescues and completed casualty evacuations in deployed environments” previously.
It is a bit of strong publicity for the Jolly Green II. And it came just days after the US Air Force revealed its fiscal 2027 budget request — in which it has no money to buy more HH-60Ws, potentially setting up a fight with Congress for the fourth straight year.
Built by Lockheed Martin subsidiary Sikorsky, the HH-60W is a derivative of the Army’s iconic Black Hawk. The helicopter is actually the Air Force’s second attempt to replace the HH-60G; the first, known as the CSAR-X program that was originally awarded to Boeing, was terminated after successful protests from Sikorsky and Lockheed Martin. (Lockheed acquired Sikorsky in 2015.)
However, service officials sought to cap the fleet of Jolly Green IIs at 75 aircraft in the fiscal 2023 budget, short of an original program of record for 113.
The argument from the Air Force has been consistent: The service is absolutely dedicated to the CSAR mission, which is why it would still have a considerable number of HH-60Ws. Furthermore, there are other assets the service can use in combat search and rescue and personnel recovery operations — a notion apparently proven out by the rescue of the downed F-15’s weapon systems officer, conducted two days after the pilot was rescued, that did not seem to have involved the Jolly Green II.
Additionally, service leaders have argued, the fleet is useful in the Middle East, but not for a China scenario, the department’s focused threat.
However, Congress has repeatedly balked at the service’s move, worried that a smaller fleet could create gaps in perilous search and rescue missions — the kind of operation that happened last Friday in Iran. Over the years, budget documents show the helicopter’s program of record has been raised to at least 89, along with a $100 million congressional plus-up for “additional aircraft” in FY26.
Budget documents released by the Trump administration on Friday show that the Air Force does not plan to request any more copies of the helicopter in FY27, consistent with previous spending plans.
At least one member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, whose home state of Connecticut hosts the HH-60W’s assembly line, plans to continue pushing for more aircraft.
“Senator Blumenthal has and will continue to champion additional procurement of the HH-60W, including as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee during negotiations on the upcoming National Defense Authorization Act,” a Blumenthal spokesperson said in a statement to Breaking Defense.
Beyond the HH-60W, future platforms could also step up to fill its role. One candidate could be the Army’s MV-75, which is aiming to begin deliveries in 2028. Another potential platform could be a high-speed, runway-independent aircraft under development at DARPA, called SPRINT. On March 9, DARPA revealed that manufacturer Bell Textron entered the “build phase” for the prototype SPRINT aircraft officially christened the X-76. Flight testing is expected to begin in “early 2028,” according to the agency.
In the meantime, the Air Force plans to upgrade the HH-60W with anti-missile countermeasures. In a request for information released today, the service is searching for vendors who can equip the helicopter with an advanced infrared countermeasures system, the lack of which “significantly increases the risk of infrared guided missile engagement, jeopardizing mission success, aircraft survivability, and crew safety,” the notice says.
The Air Force plans to offer either the common infrared countermeasure system or the distributed aperture infrared countermeasure system as government-furnished equipment, which a contractor would then integrate on the aircraft.
Valerie Insinna contributed reporting.
