S-70C Blackhawk
[/b] During the 1980s, China established a flourishing military relations with Western countries based on anti-Soviet comity. The PLA needed a new helicopter desperately to replace the ageing Z-5 (Chinese copy of Mi-4) fleet. Two major U.S. helicopter manufacturers, Bell and Sikorsky, were chosen as main bidders for an immediate deal of 20~30 helicopters, and a possible purchase of over 100 additional units afterwards.
Both companies sent their products, Bell 204 and S-70C, to China for demonstration flights. The two types of helicopters flew in most regions of China mainland, including Tibet which is famous for its harsh weather conditions. Eventually the PLA chose S-70C and a deal of 24 helicopters were delivered to the PLA Air Force in 1985. In the late 1980s these helicopters were re-assigned to the newly founded Army Aviation Corps.
As the the best helicopter in PLA service, the S-70Cs were deployed in Chengdu Military Region to support PLA ground troops in Tibet. They are also often used for rescue and disaster relief missions in Tibet. A special variant of the Y-8 (Chinese copy of An-12) was developed to carry S-70C helicopters between front-line airfields in Tibet and the main base in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. In addition, these S-70Cs were also widely used in military exercises and missions of recovering returned satellites.
Both Sikorsky and the PLA were expecting deals of additional S-70Cs after the delivery of the first batch. However, the deal was cancelled when U.S. government froze all military relations with the PRC after 1989 (that is what happens when you murder thousands of your own students I suppose). The first batch of 24 helicopters were also hardly well maintained due to the U.S. sanctions against China since 1990. At least 3 helicopters were lost due to bad weather and pilot faults. Only few of these helicopters are still in operational conditions. China may be looking for U.S. approval to begin receiving spare parts for this helicopter in the near future.[/b]
