Ambassador's remarks at Black Hawk delivery ceremony luncheon
Remarks delivered at Swedish Armed Forces Helicopter Wing, Malmen (Linköping), 17 January 2012
Dear Minister Tolgfors, General Göranson, Director General Holmgren, Colonel Westerlund, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.
“VILJA – VÅGA – VINNA” - “WANT – DARE – WIN”. These words mark the stone commemorating the foundation in 1912 of the first flight school in Sweden here at Malmen.
The motto aptly captures the drive and audacity of the school’s founder - aviation pioneer Baron Carl Cederström - the holder of the first pilot’s license in Sweden. This year thus marks the centennial of flight training in Sweden, and also the centennial of military aviation. The first military flight took place in February of 1912 not far from my residence on Gärdet in Stockholm.
We have gathered here at Malmen, a cradle of aviation in Sweden, to celebrate the momentous occasion of the handover of the first two UH-60M BLACK HAWK helicopters by the Swedish Defense Materiel Administration (FMV) to the Swedish Armed Forces.
This is a day of joy and pride – for Sweden and for the United States – a day that is a magnificent example of the deep and lasting friendship between our two countries. We are here to celebrate and recognize a truly remarkable accomplishment by all the parties involved: the Ministry of Defense, the Department of Defense, the Swedish Defense Materiel Administration, the Swedish Armed Forces, the United States Army, the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, and - I am proud to say - the United States Embassy in Stockholm.
FMV has used the heading “World record in helicopter procurement?” on its press release announcing the delivery of the first two BLACK HAWK helicopters to Sweden. Indeed, this may very well be the fastest peacetime fielding ever of a major defense system in Sweden.
As I marvel at the dedicated, focused and professional work that has made this program possible, I can’t help to reflect how appropriate the motto “VILJA – VÅGA – VINNA” - “WANT – DARE – WIN” is to the whole UH-60M BLACK HAWK program for Sweden. The Swedish Armed Forces and FMV first contacted our Embassy in November of 2009 to inquire about the possibility of procuring UH-60M helicopters and training through the Department of Defense Foreign Military Sales (FMS) system.
It was in the wake of Swedish casualties in Afghanistan and in response to an urgent operational need for a medical evacuation – MEDEVAC – capability for the Swedish contingent in the International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF).
From that day on, my staff – the Office of Defense Cooperation and the Defense Attaché Office have worked tirelessly to make this program possible. Since the first sounding contacts little over two years ago, there has been a pronounced will among all involved parties – government, military and industry – to make this happen.
But could it be done? According to standard lead times and projections – no! However, when the war fighter faces daily perils and mission success is contingent upon critical equipment, “no” or “sometime in the future” are neither satisfactory nor acceptable answers. Instead, the answers must be “yes” and “now.” There has to be a willingness to dare the uncommon, even the unprecedented.
This is exactly what took place here. The standard lead time for first delivery of UH-60M helicopters under FMS is 36 months – from contract signature!
In this case, there was an absolute requirement to have three helicopters operational with crews and maintenance personnel in Afghanistan by April of 2013.
Thanks to the tireless efforts and daring of everybody involved, a seemingly impossible equation was transformed into an executable task. Hence, the first two helicopters were airlifted on a United States Air Force C-17 aircraft to Sweden eleven months after contract signature, and the deliveries of the 13 remaining helicopters are ongoing!
Let me also say something about training, because we all know helicopters without trained pilots, maintenance, and support personnel are useless. Despite a very high demand for helicopter training slots, both from our own military and from international allies and partners, the U.S. Army has managed to build a training program for Sweden from scratch during the course of the last year-and-a-half, so that there is now a growing cadre of trained Swedish UH- 60M operators and maintenance personnel.
This week, a team of instructors from the U.S. Army is deploying to Sweden’s Armed Forces Helicopter Wing for a two-year tour. Again, I am proud to say that the Embassy is directly involved in this endeavor. The Office of Defense Cooperation now supports a security cooperation training portfolio for Sweden that in terms of overall value has increased by a factor of four, and in terms of U.S. Army-provided training has increased by a factor of ten.
The UH-60M BLACK HAWK program for Sweden is a win for Sweden and a win for the United States. Both our countries realize that security is built collectively, by working together, by bringing resources together, and by jointly facing threats and challenges wherever they may occur. My own administration emphasizes this in key policy documents, such as the 2011 Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR) and in the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR).
The UH-60M program for Sweden is directly in line with several specific objectives stated in the QDR, namely to “Build the security capacity of partner states”, to “Strengthen and expand capabilities for training partner aviation forces”, and to “Increase the availability of rotary-wing assets.”
In addition to collective security building, Sweden is implementing a comprehensive defense transformation towards “A Usable Defense.'' Defense Minister Tolgfors has summarized the required impact on force readiness with the following words:
- Increased availability – increased usability – increased quality.
- The right training – the right equipment – the right experience.
- Available and usable – now!
Minister Tolgfors, I am confident that the UH-60M package for Sweden – 15 helicopters and associated training – will contribute significantly to the objectives just stated.
I started my remarks with a motto, and I thought I would close with another one. Admiral James Stavridis, Commander of the U.S. European Command and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe has a theme which he consistently promotes and that is – “stronger together.” This motto is applicable to the achievement we celebrate today, and it will hold true for whatever challenges and perils our countries may face in the future as coalition partners.
Today, I congratulate the Swedish Armed Forces for taking delivery of the first two UH-60M BLACK HAWK helicopters, and I salute all of you who have made this possible.
Thank you!