First CH-53K King Stallion being delivered to U.S. Marines

via DVIDS

The first CH-53K King Stallion is scheduled to be delivered to Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) New River, N.C., early next week. This will mark another on-time milestone for the U.S. Marine Corps' future heavy-lift helicopter program.

The helicopter's arrival to New River enters it into the Supportability Test Plan where U.S. Marines will conduct a logistics assessment on the maintenance, sustainment and overall aviation logistics support of the King Stallion.

The CH-53K is a new build aircraft with the same logistical footprint as the current CH-53E Super Stallion, but is fly-by-wire, software driven and it can lift three times more. Modernization is already built into the aircraft.

Ok this one has been weird.

I got a news blurb about this and turned to, trying to find information.  I got several alerts that the CH-53K had ALREADY been delivered and I was scouring the web looking for info.

I even got alerts from the official USMC website about it.

Then today as I'm doing a bit of casual surfing while watching morning news I see this.

I don't mind one bit.

Yeah it's gonna be a dog and pony but they're pushing hard to get it into service and considering it's mission set and the state of the CH-53E force, I'm more than good with a little chest thumping.

I just hope they keep the party short cause there is much work to do.

Let's be real.

The price is still a concern.

It's being touted as having the potential to be a penetrator airplane so I hope those avionics work as advertised, the lift potential has to get up to speed (it was missing target but SLIGHTLY exceeding threshold goals) and again...the freaking price of the thing.

But still...good job and get back to work once the party is done!