Germany may hand over Sea King military helicopters to Ukraine in April

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius announced this following the 18th Ramstein meeting, Deutschlandfunk reports.

According to Pistorius, Ukraine will receive six Sea King Mk41 multipurpose helicopters along with a set of spare parts. In addition, Germany will provide helicopter training for the Ukrainian military.

"The Sea King is a reliable and robust helicopter that will help Ukrainians in many areas: from reconnaissance over the Black Sea to transporting soldiers. This is the first German delivery of this type," Pistorius said.

German Defense Ministry spokesman Arno Kollatz said at a briefing on January 24 that the delivery could take place as early as April.

"As for the Sea King, I can confirm that we have agreed with Ukraine to transfer 6 Sea King helicopters. This will be possible approximately in April," Ukrinform quoted Kollatz as saying.

The German defense ministry spokesman assured that this would not reduce the combat capability of the Bundeswehr, as the helicopters will be replaced by another model - the Sea Lion. At the same time, the Ukrainian side expressed interest in the Sea King during consultations.

The Sea King helicopters perform a variety of tasks, including search and rescue, transport, disaster relief, tactical land-sea transport, evacuation, surveillance, reconnaissance and maritime support. 

The German Navy has been using Sea King Mk41 helicopters since the 1970s, modernizing and re-equipping them. Recently, they have been used mainly for maritime rescue operations. Germany is now replacing these helicopters with more modern ones. 

By the way, although the Sea King Mk41 is a transport helicopter, it can carry anti-ship missiles. German Sea Kings acquired this capability after being upgraded in the late 1980s.

The UK has already supplied Sea King helicopters to Ukraine in January 2023.

• On January 23, the 18th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group format took place. It discussed important types of weapons for Ukraine, further military assistance, and long-term support for Ukraine.
• Following the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting, Canada announced that it would provide Ukraine with ten multipurpose boats and spare parts, as well as training in the use of such boats.