America’s first Dutch Apache for production

The first three Dutch AH-64 Apache attack helicopters have arrived in Boeing, Mesa, Arizona. You can tell this from Boeing’s latest news on social media.

There are 28 AH-64D Apache attack helicopters in the Netherlands. These are now about twenty years old. Called ‘Reproduction’, the devices are upgraded from AH-64D to the AH-64E V6 ‘Apache Guardian’ standard. This means reconstruction and renovation; New hull, new transmission system and new rotor blades. The aircraft will also receive new night vision equipment and new fire control radar and GPS.

Transportation

In November, the Air Force announced that three Apaches would leave Antwerp by boat for the United States. Ships carrying decommissioned helicopters are expected to arrive in the port of Baltimore on the east coast of the United States in early December. From there it goes by road to Huntsville in Alabama and then to Boeing in Arizona. They had planned to get there earlier this month.

Available

After the upgrade, the devices will last for a few years. According to the Air Force, modernized Apache can be used until 2050 with some interim modifications. The downside is that fewer Apaches will be available in operation in the coming years. Boeing now has three Apaches in the United States, with the next shipment scheduled for February 2021. The first modernized Apache is expected again in the Netherlands in mid-2023. Of the 28 helicopters, 20 ships are in the Giles-Region. Eight Apaches are permanently stationed in the United States for training purposes.