According to information published by the U.S. Department of Defense on November 16, 2021, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Chafee (DDG 90) conducts flight operations with MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to “Blue Hawks” of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron.
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Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Chafee at left and Henry J. Kaiser-class fleet replenishment oiler USNS Yukon (Picture source: U.S. Department of Defense)
USS Chafee (DDG-90) is an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer in United States Navy. She is named for Senator John Lester Hubbard Chafee (1922–1999), a Marine veteran of Guadalcanal who also served as the Secretary of the Navy.
Chafee was laid down by the Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine on 12 April 2001, launched on 2 November 2002, and commissioned on 18 October 2003 in Newport, Rhode Island, the home state of the ship's namesake.
Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 41 (HSM-41) Seahawks is a United States Navy helicopter squadron based at NAS North Island, San Diego, California.
The MH-60R is a naval version of the American-made UH-60 Black Hawk designed and manufactured by the Sikorsky company which is now part of Lockheed Martin.
The MH-60R can be armed can be equipped with a range of weapons on the four weapons stations, including Lockheed Martin AGM-114 Hellfire anti-surface missiles. For anti-submarine warfare, the MH-60R can carry up to three ATK mk50 or mk46 active/passive lightweight torpedoes. The side of the helicopter can be fitted with a pintle-mounted weapon station armed with a 7.62mm machine gun.
The MH-60R is powered by two General Electric T700-GE-401C turboshaft engines rated at 1,425kW. It can fly at a maximum speed of 267 km/h with a maximum cruising range of 834 km.
