Aircraft & UAVs

AH-60L Arpia

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

The AH-60L Arpia is Colombia's armed Black Hawk conversion family, developed around UH-60L and related airframes for attack, escort, reconnaissance, and close-air-support missions. Colombian Air Force reporting traces the first Arpia combat mission to January 1996 near Urrao, while later Arpia IV upgrades added modern sensors, helmet display aids, 70 mm rocket launchers, GAU-19 machine guns, and Spike-family air-to-ground missiles.

AH-60L Arpia, Armed utility / attack helicopter, Aircraft & UAVs
Image source: Colombian Air Force Sikorsky AH-60L Arpia III Ramirez.jpg

Role in Conflicts

Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin
Colombia
Type
Armed utility / attack helicopter
Service note
1988-present; Arpia I-IV conversion program
Designer
Fuerza Aerea Colombiana
Designed
1995
Produced
Colombian Black Hawk deliveries began in 1988; Arpia conversion work is traced to 1995, with Arpia II, III, and IV upgrades following in later program phases
Developed from
UH-60L Black Hawk

Specifications

Crew
1 pilot, 1 copilot, and 1 flight technician in the AH-60 IV fact sheet
Powerplant
Two General Electric T700-GE-701C engines rated at 1,940 shp each
Maximum speed
160 kt
Range
180 nm
Service ceiling
18,000 ft
Endurance
2 hr 30 min
Maximum weight
22,000 lb
Useful load
9,312 lb
Armament
AH-60 IV fact sheet lists two M-261 rocket launchers, four GAU-19 machine guns, and Spike-family air-to-ground missiles; Arpia IV reporting also describes LAU-19 70 mm rocket launchers and Spike LR/ER/NLOS options
Base airframe
UH-60L and related Black Hawk family airframes
Mission profile
Attack, air escort, armed reconnaissance, and close air support
Arpia IV sensors and avionics
Datalink, Rafael Toplite 3 electro-optical/FLIR targeting system, and Elbit ANVIS/HUD-24 pilot display
Variants

The Arpia sequence describes Colombian armed Black Hawk conversion standards rather than factory-new Sikorsky variants.

VariantConfigurationDesignation notes
Arpia IInitial armed UH-60 conversion

FAC reporting places the Arpia's first mission in January 1996, after the Colombian Air Force adapted the UH-60 into a fast attack platform during the internal conflict.

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

Arpia IISecond armed conversion standard

Helis lists five UH-60L Arpia II aircraft received in 1995 as part of the Colombian Air Force Black Hawk line.

Sources: Black Hawk in Fuerza Aerea Colombiana

Arpia IIIAH-60L armed Black Hawk standard

Helis lists 11 AH-60L Arpia III aircraft in 2000/1, and the current gallery documents Colombian Air Force Arpia III airframes.

Sources: Black Hawk in Fuerza Aerea Colombiana, Colombian Air Force Sikorsky AH-60L Arpia III Ramirez.jpg

Arpia IVModernized attack configuration

FAC and Infodefensa reporting describe the Arpia IV as the later attack configuration with Toplite 3, ANVIS/HUD-24, datalink, 70 mm rocket launchers, GAU-19 guns, and Spike-family missiles.

Sources: Fuerza Aerea Colombiana tiene listo ya su octavo helicoptero Arpia IV, AH-60 fact sheet

Carried Weapons

The AH-60 IV fact sheet lists four GAU-19 machine guns among the helicopter's armament.

Carried itemItem typeCarriage evidence
GAU-19 machine gun, .50 caliber rotary heavy machine gun, Infantry WeaponsGAU-19 machine gunMachine gun

The AH-60 IV fact sheet lists four GAU-19 machine guns among the helicopter's armament.

Sources: AH-60 fact sheet

Carried Launchers

The AH-60 IV fact sheet also lists two M-261 rocket launchers among the helicopter's armament.

Carried itemItem typeCarriage evidence
M261 lightweight launcher, 19-round 70 mm rocket launcher, Support EquipmentM261 lightweight launcher70 mm rocket launcher

The AH-60 IV fact sheet lists two M-261 rocket launchers among the helicopter's armament.

Sources: AH-60 fact sheet

Carried Munitions
Carried itemItem typeCarriage evidence
SPIKE anti-tank guided-missile family, Anti-tank guided missile family, Infantry WeaponsSPIKE anti-tank guided-missile familyATGM family

The Colombian Air Force AH-60 IV fact sheet lists Spike air-to-ground missiles among the helicopter's armament, and Rafael's SPIKE NLOS page shows an Arpia helicopter mounted with Spike NLOS stand-off EO missiles.

Sources: AH-60 fact sheet, Rafael SPIKE NLOS

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

Media

AH-60L Arpia Videos

AH-60L Arpia Images

AH-60L Arpia, Armed utility / attack helicopter, Aircraft & UAVs - view 1
Source: Colombian Air Force Sikorsky UH-60L Arpia III Ramrez-1.jpg
AH-60L Arpia, Armed utility / attack helicopter, Aircraft & UAVs - view 2
Source: AH-60L Arpia III FAC4129 5174258254.jpg
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Sources

Armed BLACK HAWK HelicopterPublisher: Lockheed Martin | Note: Supports general armed Black Hawk background and the modular armed-kit concept for the Black Hawk family, including the six-station weapons management suite. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Black Hawk la aeronave que escribio su historia en ColombiaPublisher: Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana | Note: Supports used by Colombian government forces in the 1964 Colombian Armed Conflict: FAC says the Arpia was developed because of Colombia's internal conflict and gives the first Arpia mission on 30 January 1996 as air support to Army troops trying to prevent FARC Front 34 from taking Urrao, Antioquia. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Fuerza Aerea Colombiana tiene listo ya su octavo helicoptero Arpia IVPublisher: Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana | Note: Supports Arpia IV armament, including Spike missiles and LAU-19 70 mm rocket launchers, and the late-2010s modernization milestone. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Black Hawk in Fuerza Aerea ColombianaPublisher: Helis.com | Note: Supports the Colombian Air Force Black Hawk chronology, including Arpia I, II, and III batch history. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Colombian Air Force Sikorsky AH-60L Arpia III Ramirez.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and licensing context for the primary Arpia III image. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Colombian Air Force Sikorsky UH-60L Arpia III Ramrez-1.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and licensing context for the second Arpia III gallery image. | Accessed: 2026-07-04AH-60L Arpia III FAC4129 5174258254.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and licensing context for the third Arpia III gallery image. | Accessed: 2026-07-04AH-60 fact sheetPublisher: Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana | Note: Supports AH-60 IV THOR mission, Sikorsky base-airframe manufacturer attribution, powerplant, performance figures, crew, useful load, and listed armament of M261 launchers, GAU-19 machine guns, and Spike family air-to-ground missiles. | Accessed: 2026-07-04Rafael SPIKE NLOSPublisher: Rafael Advanced Defense Systems | Note: Supports published Arpia helicopter carriage of Spike NLOS missiles. | Accessed: 2026-07-04