United States Navy MH-60R Seahawk helicopters operating in southern Spain

The joint naval base of Rota, in Cadiz (Spain), is home to both Spanish and American naval and air assets.

MH-60R Seahawk: this is the new multi-mission helicopter that the Spanish Navy will receive
United States Navy MH-60R helicopters on the Spanish assault ship 'Castilla' L-52

Rota is home to all the squadrons of the Spanish Navy's Air Wing (FLOAN), but ten US Navy MH-60R Seahawk helicopters are also based there. They have been deployed at this Spanish naval base since July 1, 2022.

Yesterday, the US Navy released a series of six photos of these American MH-60R helicopters operating in southern Spain. These aircraft are assigned to Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 79 "Griffins", a unit created on June 2, 2016, and initially based at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, California. Its radio call sign is "Sentinel," it is assigned to the US Navy's Sixth Fleet, and its helicopters have regularly flown from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72).

The published photos show these American MH-60Rs operating in various locations in southern Spain. All the published photos were taken on August 19. This unit is unique within the United States Navy, as it is the only squadron of the U.S. Navy's Forward-Deployed Naval Forces-Europe (FDNF-E) based on this continent.

The official HSM-79 website"the Griffins have completed multiple deployments aboard USS Roosevelt (DDG 80), USS Bulkeley (DDG 84), and USS Paul Ignatius (DDG 117) as well as provided aid during Operation Allies Refuge", the allied evacuation from Afghanistan in August 2021.

In addition to operating from U.S. Navy ships, HSM-79 has also conducted exercises aboard Spanish Navy vessels, as part of routine joint training between allied nations to enhance interoperability between their military forces. In March, the Griffins were deployed aboard the Spanish aircraft carrier "Juan Carlos I" L-61, alongside their Spanish counterparts from the 10th Squadron of the Spanish Navy. At the end of April, they trained aboard the amphibious assault ship "Castilla" L-52. Both Spanish ships are based in Rota.

The MH-60R Seahawk multi-purpose helicopters of this squadron are the latest naval version of the famous UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter. This variant has been in service with the US Navy since 2005. They perform anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and anti-surface warfare (SUW) missions and are typically based from the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers of the US missile defense system in Rota. They can also carry out rescue missions, thanks to the hoist located next to the starboard hatch.

This autumn, the Spanish Navy expects to receive its first MH-60R Seahawks. In 2023, Spain acquired a batch of eight of these helicopters to replace the aging SH-60B Seahawks of the 10th Squadron of the Spanish Navy's Naval Aviation Fleet (FLOAN), the first of which were delivered in 1988. The entire batch is expected to be delivered by 2027.

---

Fotos: U.S. Navy / Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Ryan Brown.