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        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders   B-Roll of HH-60 Pave Hawk (U.S. Air Force)
                
                
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        HH-60G Pave HawkTech. Sgt. John Rosenberg, 41st Rescue Squadron special missions aviator, leans out of an HH-60G Pave Hawk during training May 15, 2020, near Moody Air Force Base, Georgia. Airmen with the 41st RQS specialize in combat rescue of downed aircrews using night vision goggles, low-level formation, air refueling and survivor recovery. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Hayden Legg)
                
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        An HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter lands as an Army UH-60 Blackhawk prepares to pick up a medivac patient June 13. The 33rd Expeditionary Rescue Squadron is the first squadron to have a combat-search-and-rescue mission and a medevac mission, and is based at Kandahar, Afghanistan. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Brian Ferguson)An HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter lands as an Army UH-60 Blackhawk prepares to pick up a medivac patient June 13. The 33rd Expeditionary Rescue Squadron is the first squadron to have a combat-search-and-rescue mission and a medevac mission, and is based at Kandahar, Afghanistan. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Brian Ferguson)
                
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        LUNGI, Sierra Leone -- An HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter prepares to land after training here.  The helicopter is assigned to the 56th Rescue Squadron and is deployed with the 398th Air Expeditionary Group in Senegal.  (U. S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Justin D. Pyle)An HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter prepares to land after training here.  The helicopter is assigned to the 56th Rescue Squadron and is deployed with the 398th Air Expeditionary Group in Senegal.  (U. S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Justin D. Pyle)
                
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        030328-F-JZ000-047.JPGThe Pave Hawk is a highly modified version of the Army Black Hawk helicopter which features an upgraded communications and navigation suite that includes integrated inertial navigation/global positioning/Doppler navigation systems, satellite communications, secure voice, and Have Quick communications. (U.S. Air Force courtesy photo)
                
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        HH-60G Pave HawkA pararescueman, assigned to the 56th Rescue Squadron, rappels down from an HH-60G Pave Hawk during a combat search and rescue scenario on Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England, Jan. 16, 2015. Unlike other rescue squadrons, the 56th RQS is the only unit with a dedicated combat search and rescue force to conduct personnel recovery for a joint force. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Trevor T. McBride/Released)
                
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        HH-60G Pave HawkA U.S. Air Force HH-60G Pave Hawk flies over the South Carolina shore line after taking off from Joint Base Charleston, S.C. participating in a familiarization flight, 16 Sept. 2018. These flights provide a tactical picture of the area and prep crews to respond to a rescue mission in thirty minutes or less when called. The 334th Air Expeditionary Group is an expeditionary search and rescue unit comprised of 23d Wing and 920th Rescue Wing personnel and assets ready to perform surface, fixed wing and rotary SAR operations when needed. (U.S. Air Force Photo by Technical Sgt. Chris Hibben)
                
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        HH-60G Pave HawkA U.S. Air Force HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter assigned to the 56th Rescue Squadron lands at Rivolto Air Base, Italy, June 11, 2020. The 56th RQS integrates with the Guardian Angels weapon system and other special forces to support insertion, extraction and recovery of both U.S. and allied combatants. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Thomas S. Keisler IV)
                
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 HH-60G Pave Hawk**Mission**
The primary mission of the HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter is to conduct day or night personnel recovery operations into hostile environments to recover isolated personnel during war. The HH-60G is also tasked to perform military operations other than war, including civil search and rescue, medical evacuation, disaster response, humanitarian assistance, security cooperation/aviation advisory, NASA space flight support, and rescue command and control.**Features**
The Pave Hawk is a highly modified version of the Army Black Hawk helicopter which features an upgraded communications and navigation suite that includes integrated inertial navigation/global positioning/Doppler navigation systems, satellite communications, secure voice, and Have Quick communications.
All HH-60Gs have an automatic flight control system, night vision goggles with lighting and forward looking infrared system that greatly enhances night low-level operations. Additionally, Pave Hawks have color weather radar and an engine/rotor blade anti-ice system that gives the HH-60G an adverse weather capability.
Pave Hawk mission equipment includes a retractable in-flight refueling probe, internal auxiliary fuel tanks, two crew-served 7.62mm or .50 caliber machineguns, and an 8,000-pound (3,600 kilograms) capacity cargo hook. To improve air transportability and shipboard operations, all HH-60Gs have folding rotor blades.
Pave Hawk combat enhancements include a radar warning receiver, infrared jammer and a flare/chaff countermeasure dispensing system.
HH-60G rescue equipment includes a hoist capable of lifting a 600-pound load (270 kilograms) from a hover height of 200 feet (60.7 meters), and a personnel locating system that is compatible with the PRC-112 survival radio and provides range and bearing information to a survivor's location.
Pave Hawks are equipped with an over-the-horizon tactical data receiver that is capable of receiving near real-time mission update information.**Background**
The Pave Hawk is a twin-engine medium-lift helicopter operated by Air Combat Command, Pacific Air Forces, Air Education and Training Command, U.S. Air Forces in Europe, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve Command.
Pave Hawks have a long history of use in contingencies, starting in Operation Just Cause. During Operation Desert Storm they provided combat search and rescue coverage for coalition forces in western Iraq, coastal Kuwait, the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabia. They also provided emergency evacuation coverage for U.S. Navy SEAL teams penetrating the Kuwaiti coast before the invasion.
During Operation Allied Force, Pave Hawks provided continuous combat search and rescue coverage for NATO air forces, and successfully recovered two Air Force pilots who were isolated behind enemy lines.
In the aircraft's humanitarian relief missions, three Pave Hawks deployed in March 2000 to Mozambique, Africa, to support international flood relief operations. The HH-60s flew 240 missions in 17 days and delivered more than 160 tons of humanitarian relief supplies.
After Hurricane Katrina in September 2005, more than 20 active-duty, Reserve, and National Guard Pave Hawks were deployed to Jackson, Miss., in support of recovery operations in New Orleans and surrounding areas. Pave Hawk crews flew 24-hour operations for nearly a month, saving more than 4,300 Americans from the post-hurricane devastation.
Within 24 hours of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, HH-60Gs deployed to support Operation Tomodachi providing search and rescue capability to the disaster relieve
Today, Pave Hawks continue to deploy in support of operations in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya. HH-60 crews have aided hundreds of American, coalition, and foreign-national personnel by conducting personnel recovery and medical evacuations or MEDEVAC missions under low visibility, low illumination conditions at all altitudes.RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Senior Airman Ronald Arroyo awaits clearance to detach a 600-pound weight from the rescue cable of an HH-60 Pave Hawk after an operational test prior to its departure on a search and rescue mission over southern Texas Sept. 24.  Airman Arroyo is a crew chief from the 920th Rescue Wing, Patrick Air Force Base, Fla.  (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt Jack Braden.)Senior Airman Ronald Arroyo awaits clearance to detach a 600-pound weight from the rescue cable of an HH-60 Pave Hawk after an operational test prior to its departure on a search and rescue mission over southern Texas Sept. 24.  Airman Arroyo is a crew chief from the 920th Rescue Wing, Patrick Air Force Base, Fla. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Jack Braden.)
            
            
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    BASA AIR BASE, Philippines -- An HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter from the 33rd Rescue Squadron, Kadena Air Base, Japan, lands here to evacuate "injured" personnel from a cargo aircraft "accident" during a joint US/Philippine mass casualty exercise during Balikatan 2001. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Val Gempis)An HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter from the 33rd Rescue Squadron, Kadena Air Base, Japan, lands here to evacuate "injured" personnel from a cargo aircraft "accident" during a joint US/Philippine mass casualty exercise during Balikatan 2001. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Val Gempis)
            
            
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    HH-60G Pave HawkAn HH-60 Pave Hawk from the 33rd Rescue Squadron refuels behind an MC-130J from the 17th Special Operations during exercise Keen Sword 17, Nov. 7, 2016, near Okinawa, Japan. The fundamental role of U.S. forces in Japan is to deter aggression and maintain peace and security in the region, and is an essential component of the U.S.-Japan alliance. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Stephen G. Eigel)
            
            
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**General Characteristics
Primary Function:**Personnel recovery in hostile conditions and military operations other than war in day, night or marginal weather**Contractor:** United Technologies/Sikorsky Aircraft Company**Power Plant:** Two General Electric T700-GE-700 or T700-GE-701C engines**Thrust:**1,560-1,940 shaft horsepower, each engine**Rotor Diameter:**53 feet, 7 inches (14.1 meters)**Length:** 64 feet, 8 inches (17.1 meters)**Height:**16 feet, 8 inches (4.4 meters)**Weight:**22,000 pounds (9,900 kilograms)**Maximum Takeoff Weight:**22,000 pounds (9,900 kilograms)**Fuel Capacity:**4,500 pounds (2,041 kilograms)**Payload:** depends upon mission**Speed:**184 mph (159 knots)**Range:** 504 nautical miles**Ceiling:**14,000 feet (4,267 meters)**Armament:**Two 7.62mm or .50 caliber machineguns**Crew:** Two pilots, one flight engineer and one gunner**Unit Cost:**$40.1 million (FY11 Dollars)**Initial operating capability:**1982**Inventory:**Active force, 67; ANG, 17; Reserve, 15
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