The Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) has taken delivery of its 14th CH-47F Chinook helicopter from Boeing, according to a recent service news release.
“Another nice step towards a modernized air force. The new Chinooks are on the way. Please be patient, 2021 in NL,” RNLAF said on its Twitter account.
In 2016, the Netherlands acquired 14 CH-47F Chinooks through the U.S. Department of Defense’s Foreign Military Sales program and later signed an agreement that will upgrade six Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) Chinook helicopters to the latest F-model configuration, ensuring commonality of systems for their entire fleet of 20 F-model Chinooks.
The upgrade to a common configuration will improve operational effectiveness, maintenance, and affordability.
A key feature includes advanced operational capabilities provided by the Common Avionics Architecture System cockpit with an integrated Digital Automatic Flight Control System. The common avionics architecture system also aligns with the U.S Army and other allies, improving worldwide interoperability, flight-handling characteristics, and long term sustainability.
The RNLAF currently flies a mix of F-model Chinooks with the Advanced Cockpit Management System (ACMS) and CH-47D Chinooks.
To date, Boeing has delivered more than 900 H-47 Chinook helicopters. The Chinook is on order or operated by 20 countries, including eight NATO nations – Canada, Greece, Italy, The Netherlands, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, and the U.S.
We recently delivered the 14th new-build CH-47F #Chinook to @Kon_Luchtmacht. Watch as we take you from airframe to full aircraft! pic.twitter.com/VwupGcGuid
— Boeing Defense (@BoeingDefense) December 7, 2020