Sikorsky and Israel’s Ministry of Defense have signed a support agreement for the CH-53D, Lockheed Martin said. Sikorsky is to supply spare parts and associated engineering service for the Israeli Air Force (IAF), which has operated the aircraft since 1969.

With an intended duration of seven years, the agreement gives Sikorsky the ability to manage and source its supply chain for obsolete parts or parts that are diminishing in supply. This sustainment plan, Lockheed Martin said, should extend the operational life of the Israeli Air Force’s fleet beyond 50 years of service.

"This program will ensure that the IAF can overcome a growing shortage of hard-to-acquire components for its CH-53D fleet to help improve mission readiness well into the next decade and thereby extend operational life beyond the half century mark," said Bill Gostic, VP of Sikorsky Global Military Systems & Services. "Sikorsky will work across its supply chain to manufacture dozens of critical and low-demand components that we or our suppliers have stopped making, with the added guarantees of supply quantity, consistency of quality and price stability."

Lockheed Martin said Sikorsky plans to work with its U.S. supplier base for more than 80 distinct part numbers into the mid-2020s. The contract covers many parts found in the dynamic sections of the aircraft.