Page 48 - Royal Jordanian Air Force Book

NO. 30 SPECIAL HELICOPTER
SQUADRON

Also based at King Abdullah Air Base in Ghabawi, the
squadron, where the sole vehicle is the multi-mission
Blackhawk UH-60L “Lima”, is dedicated to supporting
King Abdullah II Special Operation Forces Group in
all missions as per the Group's request. These include
combat, search and rescue, reconnaissance and air
assault, among others.

It was established in 2004, along with Prince Hashem
Special Operations Brigade, upon the directives of His
Majesty King Abdullah II, who had a vision to build an
elite air force unit to support special operations forces
and one that remains ready to respond to requests by
the SOF. Actual operations started upon the arrival of
the first helicopters in 2007.

In 2009, special assault training was launched for
pilots from the squadron, coinciding with the arrival
of Blackhawk UH-60L “Lima” helicopters, which
were the state-of-the art at the time.

Since then, and up to 2012, pilots were trained by the
1-60 US Special Forces elite unit, along with colleagues
from the 28th Squadron, with the aim of mastering
joint missions. Four classes were graduated, all
under the patronage of His Majesty the Supreme
Commander. The graduates themselves became
trainers and produced four other classes of qualified
pilots.

The UH-60L Blackhawks have been upgraded to fly
for a longer period, around 4.5 hours. The choppers
are also fully self-protected against all types of
rockets, and operate cameras that broadcast the
mission live. The squadron's main unique feature is
that its vehicles are the only ones that can fly under
zero-moon conditions, in complete darkness.

In 2018, the squadron returned to RJAF command,
which agreed to adopt the same training syllabus
that had been used, while under the command of the
Special Forces.

ROYAL JORDANIAN AIR FORCE 47