Joint Base Andrews activates new helicopter squadron for HH-60W mission

For the first time in 60 years, Joint Base Andrews stood up a new helicopter squadron in preparation for the base to receive HH-60Ws.

The activation of the 5th Helicopter Squadron on Aug. 28 takes the base a step closer to receiving 26 HH-60W Jolly Green IIs, advanced combat search-and-rescue helicopters that will eventually replace the base’s aging medium-utility UH-1N Huey

Recently, the Air Force selected the Maryland base to receive the new aircraft, with the 5th slated to be the first unit to receive the Jolly Green IIs as the 1st Helicopter Squadron continues to fly the Hueys before converting to the Whiskey mission.

The 1st was the Air Force’s only rotary-wing unit in the National Capital Region for the past 60 years until the 5th’s activation, according to a recent release.

The new aircraft are expected to reach initial operating capability by 2029, with full operational capability slated for 2030.

The idea for a new helicopter squadron came to fruition less than a month after the wing began the paperwork needed to establish it, Col. Kevin Geoffroy, 316th Operations Group commander, said during Thursday’s ceremony.

Initially, the 5th will fly the Jolly Green IIs while the 1st transitions to the new aircraft. The 5th will work to take over some of the 1st’s mission.

“[The 5th] will stand constant vigil alongside the 1st Helicopter Squadron, continuing our no-fail mission to conduct contingency response operations vital to national security, and provide priority airlift for our nation’s civil and military leadership in the national capital region,” Geoffroy said during the ceremony.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Bonilla assumed command of the newly activated 5th Helicopter Squadron, celebrating the 5th’s ability to build its own legacy on top of the Huey’s as the aging aircraft leave the base in the coming years.

“Our mission is not to replace that history,” Bonilla said during the ceremony. “Our mission is to honor it by carrying it forward into the next chapter.”

Bonilla said that the 5th has a “unique opportunity” because the squadron is being built from the ground up, meaning it can drive change and not be bound by past norms.

The base was able to have a Jolly Green II for the ceremony, courtesy of the New York Air National Guard’s 106th Rescue Wing, which flew the aircraft in for the service.

Lt. Col. James Gray, the 5th Helicopter Squadron’s director of operations, told reporters at the activation ceremony that the 5th’s first mission set is to build the Jolly Green II aircrew.

For Gray, the focus after activation is building a plan to address the unknowns, including getting to know the aircrew who will transition over and integrating with the National Capital Region’s airspace.

“That’s the big change in my mind: when you have something this momentous, you have to carry the legacy, but you also get to kind of form a new culture,” Gray said. “It’s kind of a great crossroads, if you will, between the two cultures.”