On November 6, 2026, the U.S. Department of State approved a possible sale to Mexico of 11 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters and associated equipment for 1.075 billion dollars, roughly 20 billion pesos. The transaction was notified to the U.S. Congress and includes engines, navigation systems, radios and night-vision goggles.
The authorization falls under the Foreign Military Sales process, the mechanism through which the U.S. government allows its contractors to sell equipment to allied armed forces. The U.S. Congress receives these notifications before the transactions move to contract negotiation. Infobae reported that the announcement was published on November 6 and that the package aims to expand Mexico's UH-60M fleet and consolidate models. Aristegui Noticias specified that the official request included 27 T700-GE-701D engines, 27 EAGLE-M+429 inertial and GPS navigation systems and 27 satellite communications radios. For Mexico, the detail matters because the pace of these approvals shapes the renewal of its armed forces' aerial equipment and the level of interoperability with its main defense partner.
Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin subsidiary headquartered in Stratford, Connecticut, is the prime contractor. The company has built more than 5,000 aircraft of the Hawk family for 36 countries, according to Aristegui Noticias. According to Infobae, the package adds RDR-7000 weather radars, M-134 machine guns, ballistic armor, rescue hoists and training and logistics support equipment. The Department of State maintained that the transaction does not alter the basic military balance in the region or affect U.S. defensive readiness, and that it supports aerial transport missions against drug trafficking. Aristegui Noticias added that the project contemplates the temporary deployment of 15 U.S. representatives in Mexico to coordinate the receipt of the equipment and the training of personnel. The transaction is still described as a possible sale, not a signed contract.
The next signal will be the signing of the definitive contract and the determination of which Mexican agency will receive the aircraft, a detail that neither the notification nor the reports specify. The approval also reveals the pace of the military sales program toward Mexico as the year closes.
This article was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.