Both Montana Sens. Jon Tester and Steve Daines said on Feb. 21 that they were announcing Malmstrom Air Force Base would receive it’s first MH-139 Grey Wolf helicopter in March.

That information was no surprise to anyone who attended a Jan. 2 City Commission meeting when Col. Barry Little, 341st Missile Wing commander, said during the public meeting that the base would receive their first new helicopter in March.

The Electric reported that information on Jan. 5: Multiple major projects ongoing at Malmstrom; preparing for Sentinel

Malmstrom is still set to be the first intercontinental ballistic missile base to receive the new helicopters that will replace the current UH-1N Hueys.

In 2020, both Tester and Daines said they were announcing that Malmstrom would be the first base to receive the helicopters.

That had been the schedule since at least January 2019, according to base officials speaking at public events, an Air Force release, and The Electric’s reporting.

Tester said that Malmstrom will receive seven of the new helicopters this year and additional aircraft will be delivered later. Tester’s office said that the first aircraft would be flown into Malmstrom in March.

Malmstrom still set to receive new helicopter first, no change in delivery order [2020]

Malmstrom officials couldn’t confirm that information on Feb. 21 and Air Force Global Strike Command, Malmstrom’s parent command, didn’t respond to the The Electric’s questions on Wednesday.

Both senators said they have worked to get the new helicopters for Malmstrom.

“The airmen and women at Malmstrom play a critical role in our national defense strategy and should have the best possible tools to keep Montana and our nation safe,” Tester said in a release. “That’s why I’ve fought for years to replace Malmstrom’s Vietnam-era fleet of helicopters with new MH-139 Grey Wolves that are more reliable, safe, and efficient. I’m proud to have worked with the Air Force to deliver these aircraft so that our airmen and women have the certainty they need to do their jobs and protect our country.”

“Montana has the best airmen and facilities in the country and the Grey Wolf will be right at home at Malmstrom. I was proud to start advocating for the replacement of the Vietnam-era Huey’s back in 2020 and am grateful to see these efforts finally come to fruition,” Daines said in a release.

Grey Wolf squadron activated, new large maintenance vehicle arrives at Malmstrom [2023]

In 2016, several senators, including Tester and Daines, wrote a letter to the then Secretary of Defense Ash Carter that the Huey helicopters didn’t meet current threats to national security and that they had provided funding to replace the Hueys with UH-60 Black Hawks on the Army’s production line at the time to speed the replacement process.

The Air Force had attempted to speed the Huey replacement in fiscal year 2018, which began Oct. 1, 2017, using the Economy Act, based on a request from the U.S. Strategic Command commander.

But, the Air Force shifted gears based on some pushback and instead went with a full competition process.

Air Force accepts ownership of four Grey Wolf helicopters [2022]

At the time, Daines supported replacing the Hueys with Black Hawks, especially since the Montana Air National Guard already used them.

Tester said in his Feb. 21 release that he had supported replacing the Hueys using an existing Army contract. In 2017, he told The Electric that he was supportive of the competitive process to get “the best possible equipment at the fairest cost to taxpayers.”

In 2017, the Air Force opened the helicopter replacement for bids.

Air Force awards Huey replacement contract to Boeing [2018]

In 2018, the Air Force awarded the first portion of a $2.38 billion firm-fixed-price contract to Boeing for the MH-139, which was later dubbed the Grey Wolf.

The helicopters were expected to be delivered beginning in 2021, but have faced a number of delays.

Final RFP issued in search for Huey replacement, including those at Malmstrom [2017]

In January 2024, the Director, Operational Test and Evaluation, a Congressionally established position that advises the Defense Department on all operational test and evaluations of department systems and acquired services found that the Air Force had made some progress addressing previously reported deficiencies with the Grey Wolf, “existing and newly identified deficiencies still present a risk to the MH-139A meeting operational effectiveness requirements.”

The report also identified deficiencies in the Grey Wolf’s suitability and survivability.

Hueys have been used for decades in supporting the ICBM mission, but were not originally intended to provide security, according to U.S. Strategic Command.

In 2016, a USSTRATCOM spokesman told this reporter, while she was working at the Great Falls Tribune, that the Huey’s “role was to move personnel and equipment across the vast ICBM complex. It was later incorporated into the security mission because of its ability to rapidly deploy security forces. As the nature of the security posture and forces evolved, the UH-1N was found to lack adequate range, speed and payload to fully meet all of the department’s nuclear security requirements.Until the UH-1N is replaced, the Air Force has put in place other security measures to ensure the continued safety and security of nuclear weapons in the ICBM complex. USSTRATCOM has also requested, to the Joint Staff, additional security support until a UH-1N replacement is fully fielded. That request is with the Joint Staff for evaluation.”

Then, and now, the Air Force maintains that nuclear sites remain secure despite the aging Huey.

Last summer, a group of airmen from Malmstrom Air Force base traveled to Pennsylvania this summer for the first round of training on the MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopter that’s replacing the UH-1N Huey.

The 32-day training was held at Leonardo Helicopters Training Academy, according to a Malmstrom release.

The Boeing-led training sets up the crew members to work with the recently established 550th Helicopter Squadron at Malmstrom to create a conversion course syllabus for the Huey aircrews.

The training will eventually be provided at other Air Force Global Strike Command bases, according to Malmstrom.

Daines, Tester visit local military bases; discuss Sentinel, Grey Wolf, cancer study [2023]

The 550th plans to complete their qualification training at Malmstrom within the next 18 months, allowing them to move forward with operational tests and evaluations, Malmstrom officials said in August. Then they’ll establish conversion training for the 40th air crews at Malmstrom and the other AFGSC Grey Wolf units.

In May 2023, the Air Force activated the 550th Helicopter Squadron, a new unit at Malmstrom to support the crew transition to the new Grey Wolf helicopters from the current Huey.

Grey Wolf completes another test [2023]

The squadron will handle training and conversion to the new helicopter for the next five to seven years under Air Force Global Strike Command.

The new MH-139s will belong to the existing 40th Helicopter Squadron on Malmstrom, but initially the 550th will handle a majority of flying as crews get seasoned and go through the operational test, according to AFGSC.

The 40th currently operates Hueys for security support of Malmstrom’s nuclear missile operations.