Norway will send spare parts from retired Sea King helicopters to Ukraine to augment the repair capacity of six aircraft being donated by Germany.
The parts will be drawn from Norwegian Sea Kings that served from 1973 until 2023, defence minister Bjørn Arild Gram said in a statement.
“Norway considers it important to ensure that Ukraine is able to build its Coast Guard and increase its maritime capabilities as rapidly as possible,” said Gram.
Germany has decided to donate six Sea Kings to Ukraine, while the United Kingdom (U.K.) intends to donate three of the type. Norway’s retired Sea Kings have reached their maximum number of flight hours and cannot be donated, the government said.
The country’s Sea King fleet has been replaced with all-weather SAR Queen (Leonardo AW101) helicopters. Norway ordered 16 of the newer type, with the first six entering service Sept. 1, 2020.
“The Black Sea and the maritime domain in general are of strategic importance to Ukraine, and are crucial to the country’s ability to export goods,” said Espen Barth Eide, Norway’s foreign affairs minister.
“I am pleased that spare parts from our discarded Sea Kings can help make a difference for Ukraine, and facilitate the efforts to establish the Ukrainian Coast Guard.”
Norway and the U.K. are co-chairs of the Maritime Capability Coalition, which aims to augment the Ukrainian Naval Forces as a whole, including the Coast Guard.