Aircraft & UAVs

AH-60L Arpia

The AH-60L Arpia is Colombia's locally developed armed Black Hawk family, converting UH-60L and related Black Hawk airframes into attack and escort helicopters with stub wings, machine-gun pods, rocket launchers, and later Spike missiles. Colombian Air Force reporting places the first Arpia mission in January 1996 and describes the program as evolving through Arpia I-IV to give the service a fast, highly maneuverable fire-support platform.

Profile

Origin
Colombia
Built by
Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana
Type
Armed utility / attack helicopter
Service note
1988-present; Arpia I-IV conversion program
Designer
Fuerza Aerea Colombiana
Designed
1995
Produced
Arpia I deliveries began in 1988; Arpia III documented in 2000/1; Arpia IV modernization continued into the late 2010s
Variants
UH-60A Arpia I, UH-60L Arpia II, AH-60L Arpia III, AH-60L Arpia IV
Developed from
UH-60L Black Hawk

Also Known As

  • AH-60
  • Arpia
  • Arpia I
  • Arpia II
  • Arpia III
  • Arpia IV
  • UH-60L Arpia
  • Armed Black Hawk helicopter

Specifications

Crew
2 pilots plus mission crew or gunners depending on fit
Armament
Early conversions used GAU-2B machine-gun pods and rocket launchers; Arpia IV reporting added Spike antitank missiles and LAU-19 70 mm rocket launchers
Base airframe
UH-60L and related Black Hawk family airframes
Mission profile
Attack, escort, and close air support
Upgrades
Later Arpia variants added modernized weapons stations and cockpit mission aids

Service And Conflict Use

Service History

In service
Colombian attack and escort helicopter service from the mid-1990s onward, with Arpia variants evolving through Arpia I-IV.
Used by
Colombian Air Force
Wars
Various Conflicts

Conflict Usage

Side
🏳️Unspecified

Exact model: AH-60L Arpia / Arpia III-IV armed Black Hawk family, and more generally S-70i/UH-60 armed Black Hawk configurations. Colombia's armed Black Hawks have been used for attack and close-support missions in the Colombian internal conflict.

Timeline

AH-60L Arpia Key Events

  1. First Colombian Black Hawk deliveries

    Helis reports that the Colombian Air Force received 10 UH-60A Arpia I helicopters in 1988, starting the Colombian Black Hawk line.

    Sources: Black Hawk in Fuerza Aerea Colombiana

  2. First Arpia mission

    Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana reporting says the first Arpia mission was a close-support operation on 30 January 1996 during fighting around Urrao, Antioquia.

    Sources: Black Hawk: la aeronave que escribio su historia en Colombia

  3. Arpia III enters the fleet

    Helis lists 11 AH-60L Arpia III aircraft delivered in 2000/1, marking the family's move into the later armed Black Hawk standard.

    Sources: Black Hawk in Fuerza Aerea Colombiana

  4. Arpia IV modernization publicized

    FAC reporting described the Arpia IV as the latest attack configuration and said the program had reached its eighth Arpia IV helicopter by November 2017.

    Sources: Fuerza Aerea Colombiana tiene listo ya su octavo helicoptero Arpia IV

AH-60L Arpia Images

Related Weapon Systems

AH-1Z Viper attack helicopter, Attack helicopter, Aircraft & UAVsAircraft & UAVsAH-1Z Viper attack helicopterAttack helicopterThe Bell AH-1Z Viper is a two-seat U.S. Marine Corps attack helicopter developed for the H-1 upgrade program. Bell describes it as a marinized attack-and-reconnaissance platform with a four-bladed composite rotor, 200 KIAS top speed, 310 nm range, and six weapon stations, while official Navy reporting says the Marine Corps declared AGM-179A JAGM initial operational capability on the AH-1Z and that AH-1Z pilots tested the missile in 2021.

Sources