Boeing (NYSE: BA) has received a $578 million contract from U.S. Special Operations Command to manufacture 14 extended-range Chinook helicopters for the British air force.
The company said Tuesday it aims to deliver H-47 heavy-lift aircraft units to the U.K. starting in 2026 under the foreign military sales contract and that country will be the first international Block II Chinook operator.
According to the Chicago-based planemaker, the Block II model is designed to carry up to 22,000 pounds of payload and features an updated rotor blade, fuel tanks, fuselage and drivetrain.
“This contract for Block II aircraft sets the stage for the next 60 years of Chinook excellence on the battlefield,” said Andy Builta, a vice president and H-47 program manager at Boeing.
Boeing personnel help maintain the U.K.’s Chinook fleet at the Gosport installation and the MOD Boscombe Down testing site in England.