Sikorsky

The government has signed a letter of offer and acceptance formalizing its intention to procure 35 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters from Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, through an intergovernmental agreement with the US.

Greece will be receiving the first three of seven MH-60R Seahawk helicopters this year aboard US Navy transport planes, after Sikorsky, a subsidiary of US weapons maker Lockheed Martin, completed the flight tests, the company announced on Wednesday.

The remaining four aircraft will be delivered in 2025 to complete the Hellenic Navy's purchase, it added. 

The US Department of State has approved a possible sale to Greece of 35 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters "and related equipment," it announced Friday. The estimated cost is $1.95 billion.

The military parade commemorating the 202nd anniversary of Greece's War of Independence from the Ottoman empire got underway in central Athens Saturday morning.

Taking part in the parade are members of the armed forces, including military academy students, as well as police.

Kobe Bryant, the NBA legend who played with the Lakers for 20 years, was killed in a helicopter, which burst into flames when crashing in California on Sunday morning. His 13-year-old daughter Gianna was also among nine people on board the plane.

Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, has said it transferred to defense electronics firm Aselsan an S-70i Black Hawk helicopter for use as the prototype aircraft for the Turkish Utility Helicopter Program (TUHP), in a statement on March 2. 

The world's aviation and defense giants, including Boeing, Airbus and Thyssen-Krupp, are looking into Turkish contractors for cooperation opportunities, according to an executive of an Istanbul-based defense industry umbrella organization. 

U.S. Ambassador to Ankara John Bass has downplayed the importance of national borders on the way to economic development during his visit to a number of technology companies in the northwestern district of Gebze.

Lockheed Martin Corp said on July 20 it would buy Sikorsky Aircraft, the helicopter unit of United Technologies Corp, for $9 billion, and would review the possible sale or spinoff of $6 billion in other information technology and services businesses.

Lockheed Martin Corp and Textron Inc have emerged as final contenders to buy United Technologies Corp?s Sikorsky Aircraft business, which could be valued at around $8 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.

UTC is weighing offers from the two companies and may come to a decision by the end of the month, one of the people said.