Poland’s Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak has announced that his country has signed a contract for the delivery of Hellfire missiles from the United States.
“They will arm the AW149 support helicopters and eventually the AH-64E Apache Guardian attack helicopters,” he wrote in a social media post on Tuesday.
The AW149 helicopters are being produced in Poland, with the first batch of them to be delivered to the 25th Air Cavalry Brigade by the end of the year.
They will be armed with Hellfire missiles and are capable of transporting soldiers and supporting them from the air. They can also be used for search and evacuation missions.
Poland filed a request to purchase 96 U.S. AH-64 Apache helicopters last year and is still awaiting approval from the U.S. Congress and the State Department. However, this seems to be a formality.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, when attending the Griffin Shock 23-1 military exercises in northwestern Poland two weeks ago, announced that Polish pilots were expected to begin their training on the Apaches soon and that the first Apaches could arrive in Poland even before the contract for their purchase is formally signed.
