MRH-90 Swoops In

15 September 2009

Navy's high tech replacement for the Sea Kings has stepped out in style, with a spectacular test flight down the east coast.

Aviation enthusiasts and the local media turned out in force, as the MRH-90 made its way to Nowra from Townsville, via Oakey in Tamworth.

"We had a dream run" said the Test Flight Detachment Commander, LCDR Brad Mackay, with a big grin", The flight controls are just great. It's like getting out of a Commodore and into a Ferrari."

"Ultimately these towns are aviation hotspots and the locals know when an unfamiliar aircraft is flying past so we thought we'd give them a chance to take a look," said LCDR Mackay.

The MRH90s are now being prepared for embarkation in HMAS Kanimbla so LCDR Mackay and his team can conduct maritime trials off the southern coast of Australia.

For the small but expert team at the Navy's Nowra based Aircraft Maintenance and Flight Trials Unit (AMAFTU) (CMDR David Frost, RAN) the coming months will be a busy time as they put the aircraft through its paces to determine the limits at which it can operate at sea.

"The MRH90 Project will see 46 aircraft brought into service across Navy and Army. Significantly, despite only six of these aircraft being intended for RAN operation, AMAFTU has the lead with the First of Class Flight Trials (FOCFT) to establish limits for operating the MRH-90 at sea", said CMDR Frost.

AMAFTU is the ADF's leading authority in the conduct of FOCFT and is comprised of a number of test pilots, aero-systems specialists, flight test engineers, aviation engineers and aircraft technicians.

The first MRH-90 is expected to enter service at sea in mid 2010 and represents an exciting new chapter in Naval Aviation.