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Home Kevin Gorinshteyn 2017-11-16T13:26:40+00:00

“Super 65”, photographed Somalia – 1993

In 2015 Unical Defense purchased UH-60A 83-23887 (Former MH-60A). Not only is this Black Hawk one of the few former Special Operations aircraft released to the civil market, but it also has a distinguished history having participated in the Battle of Mogadishu as “Super 65” / “Heavy Metal”.

The Battle of Mogadishu or the Battle of the Black Sea took place Oct. 3-4, 1993 and was made popular by the Mark Bowden Philadelphia Inquirer articles and subsequent Ridley Scott movie “Black Hawk Down”. This UH-60 was part of the 160th SOAR (Special Operations Aviation Regiment) D Company in Operation Gothic Serpent, Somalia.

Crewed by pilots Gerry Izzo, Richard Williams and Crew Chief Pat Powers, “Super 65” was tasked with fast-rope inserting Chalk 2: a group of U.S. Army Rangers led by First Lt. Tom DiTomasso.

Click here to read more about the Battle of Mogadishu.

First Engine Test Successful
Engine run-ups took place on November 3, and all systems checked out.
Exterior Paint Complete
The exterior paint project began by stripping the airframe down to bare metal. The entire structure was checked for cracks or other structural issues before a primer coat was applied. The final coats of olive [...]