The MH-139A Grey Wolf, meant to replace the U.S. Air Force’s Vietnam-era UH-1N Hueys, is now gradually being fielded and integrated into the nuclear defense mission, after the delivery of the first production helicopter earlier this year.
A U.S. Air Force MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopter from the 908th Flying Training Wing accomplished the type’s first ever guest participation in a training exercise at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama, on Sep. 7, 2024, when the 908th Operations Support Squadron held the Ready Airman Training Exercise. This milestone comes after the 908th FTW has been in the process of transitioning from the C-130 to becoming a formal training unit for the MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopter for nearly four years.
Since July, Airmen from the Squadron have been practicing drills such as base defense, tactical combat casualty care, weapons handling, small arms tactics, survival, evasion, resistance and escape tactics and other agile combat employment priorities, giving leadership a chance to test and evaluate multi-capable Airman skills, said the Air Force.
The appearance of the MH-139A Grey Wolf provided a “sense of realism” into these scenarios, said the 703rd Helicopter Squadron director of operations, Lt. Col. Justin McCullough, while the helicopter crews are themselves in nascent stages of their training on the aircraft. The MH-139A Grey Wolf was piloted by Flight Commander, Lt. Col. Kyle Wamser, who is also the 908th Operations Group Standardization and Evaluation Chief, while McCullough was the co-pilot.
The 908th FTW was originally the 908th Airlift Wing until Jul. 20, 2024, when it was converted into the new role after conducting its final flight with the last four C-130H Hercules aircraft which have been now redistributed to other units of the Air Force. Likewise, the 357th Airlift Squadron that inactivated that day and then was reactivated as the 703rd Helicopter Squadron.
The original 908th Airlift Wing last changed airframes when it began transitioning from the C-7A Caribou to the C-130H in Feb. 1982. In Apr. 2024 the unit received its first MH-139 ahead of the redesignation as 908th FTW.
The exercise and the Grey Wolf training
“Most of the planning was accomplished by Tech. Sgt. Jesse Liethen, as he developed the ground exercise,” said Lt. Col. McCullough. “From there, the aircrew planning was relatively simple as it ended up being an exercise in basic maneuvers for us. We are in the infancy stages of our flight training, but it was exciting to provide the ground members who were in the exercise a sense of realism to their scenario.”
According to the press release, a little past the halfway point of the hour-long exercise, the MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopter was spotted flying in the local pattern overhead and began circling the training compound. Airmen on the ground participating in the exercise then simulated calling for a show of force flyby, which the Air Force described as an “air support concept that demonstrates air superiority.” The show of force is often performed during close air support (CAS) missions before employing weapons in an attempt to deter hostile forces on the ground.
After complying with the request for the show of force, the Grey Wolf continued by performing a landing in an unimproved location, a grass field outside of the training compound. The service said the helicopter simulated having a security forces team exit the aircraft and proceed to help reinforce the compound, and then exfiltrated the area.
The U.S. Air Force’s newest helicopter is ready to serve.
We delivered the @USAirForce’s first two production MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopters last month – with more to come. The Philadelphia-built #MH139 is designed to protect ICBMs and transport personnel. #AFANational
— Boeing Defense (@BoeingDefense) September 17, 2024
“This was a valuable experience as an aircrew to participate with ground parties before being added to our mission qualifications in the coming months,” said Lt. Col. Wamser. “It supports our crawl, walk then run approach to the new aircraft and was even better that a lot of people beyond the crew flying were able to complete valuable training.”
Despite the “rudimentary” level of participation, it nevertheless marked the beginning of the Grey Wolf integration in the 908th’s FTW’s exercises, with possibly more advanced maneuvers and complex mission tests as the crews refine their piloting and maintenance skills.
“For this exercise we did not fly any members or do anything outside of our basic proficiency level,” explained McCullough. “But, in the future we will be able to provide airlift support, static line, and potentially medical evacuation scenarios.” The crew know that while their role in this exercise was small, it takes an entire wing to make something like this possible.
Milestones
Other units also contribute to the 908th FTW’s functioning and to make the MH-139A Grey Wolf’s flights smooth. For instance, the 908th Maintenance Group ensures the aircraft are ready and inspected to the highest standards, members from aircrew flight equipment make sure crews are safely equipped and the 908th Mission Support Group gets personnel to the unit training assembly.
Another “historic first” the flight marked was the first MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopter flight where the entire crew was made up of Air Force Reserve Command members, including Master Sgt. Kyle Nagamatsu, beside Wamser and McCullough.
New USAF MH-139 Grey Wolf N806SH/20-1006 #AAF9BF as ” LYCAN66 ” stopping by KADS on 10/14/23! #avgeek #aviation #aviationphotography #planespotting #photography #Dallas #Texas pic.twitter.com/TKo2FerrQe
— 𝙎𝙍_𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 (@SR_Planespotter) October 23, 2023
“It is certainly exciting to see the program as a whole move forward and hit key historic milestones like this. The 908th OSS provided a great training scenario, and we were really just a small piece of the puzzle,” McCullough noted.
MH-139A Grey Wolf acquisition
The MH-139A Grey Wolf is a variant of the AW139M, itself the militarized version of Leonardo’s AW139 commercial helicopter, meant to replace the U.S. Air Force’s Vietnam-era UH-1N Hueys. The primary role of the helicopter will be to support the nuclear security mission, conducting aerial patrols near nuclear missile bases and responding to contingency situations. Leonardo first produces the base helicopter at its facility in northeast Philadelphia, and Boeing then modifies and outfits the aircraft with the necessary military equipment.
On Aug. 5, 2024, Boeing announced delivering the first production MH-139A Grey Wolf to the U.S. Air Force. The helicopter will be stationed at Malmstrom AFB, Montana, which hosts the Minuteman III ICBMs. The Air Force in spring 2023 awarded Boeing and Leonardo a $285 million low-rate initial production contract to start building the first 13 Grey Wolfs.
The 1st Grey Wolf is on the ground at Malmstrom AFB. The MH-139 will be taking over the UH-1N Huey’s mission to provide vertical airlift, security and support to @usairforce ICBM sites.@US_STRATCOM pic.twitter.com/LRMn7OHFR8
— Air Force Global Strike Command (@AFGlobalStrike) March 6, 2024
The Air Force then again contracted Boeing for seven more MH-139s, bringing the total number of officially sought units to 26. The service originally planned to acquire 80 Grey Wolfs to patrol nuclear missile fields and transport senior officials but, amid tight budgets, it has since dramatically cut the orders in half, now expecting to buy only 42 units. This has raised the individual price of each helicopter, enough to cause a Nunn-McCurdy breach, which triggers a review that could result in a program getting canceled, until the Pentagon certifies to the Congress that it is important to proceed with it.
