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NEWS | HH-60W Jolly Green II in US US Air Force

Aviano Transitions to HH-60W Jolly Green II

US Air Force 56th Rescue Squadron (56 RQS) at Aviano Air Base in Italy has begun transitioning to the Sikorsky HH-60W Jolly Green II new combat search and rescue (CSAR) helicopter that replaces the HH-60G Pave Hawk

Aviano received its first HH-60W on December 13 and is scheduled to have a total of six helicopters by October 2025





Aviano Transitions to HH-60W Jolly Green II
US Air Force, January 19, 2025 - AVIANO AIR BASE, Italy by Brian Erickson, Star and Stripes, DoD - Airmen in the 31st Fighter Wing have their transition to a new cutting-edge combat rescue helicopter underway, putting Aviano’s fleet of two HH-60W Jolly Green II aircraft on display for the first time.

On January 10, the wing held an official welcome ceremony for the Jolly Green II, which serves as the Air Force’s replacement for the venerable HH-60G Pave Hawk. Aviano received its first of the new helicopters last month and is scheduled to have a total of six by October.

It was crucial to bring the Jolly Green II to Aviano because the helicopter was specifically designed to operate in a joint theater like U.S. European Command, Lt. Col. Theodore Rodgers, the wing’s division chief for the HH-60W program integration office, said Friday. The Jolly Green II has a wider core blade and weighs about 4,000 pounds less than the Pave Hawk, offering pilots more power and allowing the aircraft to carry more equipment, ammunition and passengers, Rodgers said.

The helicopter is made by Sikorsky, which also produces the Army’s Black Hawk. It represents a significant boost in capabilities over its precursor, with better avionics, threat detection and countermeasures as well as greater fuel capacity, according to the Air Force.

The name Jolly Green II pays homage to the Vietnam War-era Sikorsky HH-3E Jolly Green and HH-53 Super Jolly Green, whose crews are regarded as the pioneers of aerial combat search and rescue, the Air Force said in 2020.

The upgrades reflect a focus on protecting crews and evacuees in hostile environments, Air Force Air Education and Training Command said in a December statement.

Later in December, Aviano airmen took a farewell flight in a Pave Hawk, giving a sendoff to a combat rescue helicopter that enjoyed a long run of use in saving American service members all over the globe.

The Jolly Green II provides the agility, survivability and lethality needed on future battlefields, 31st Fighter Wing commander Brig. Gen. Tad Clark said in a speech Friday. “This moment, although exceptional, is not just about the arrival of the new aircraft; it’s about embracing the challenges of today,” Clark said.




Location : IT Aviano

  See also


HH-60W Jolly Green II in US US Air Force
56th RQS US 56th Rescue Squadron US Air Force




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