Thailand is to purchase two Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters, joining a growing list of export customers that could help buffer the manufacturer against possible U.S. defense budget cuts.

The Royal Thai Army has signed a letter of offer and acceptance to acquire the two helicopters through the U.S. government’s foreign military sales (FMS) channel.

The latest FMS deal, the first in Asia, comes as Sikorsky prepares to sign the second UH-60M multi-year procurement contract with the U.S. Army, for approximately 300 aircraft over five years.

But whether the Army will be able to hold to the planned quantities will depend on what happens in Washington with the threat of so-called sequestration, which could force deep budget cuts on the Pentagon.

“If there is no sequestration, we have a plan,” says new Sikorsky President Mick Maurer. “We have not yet added in sequestration because first it has to happen.

“FMS gives us a little bit of flexibility in the near-term profile. We could pull aircraft forward to offset [reductions] in U.S. government [procurement],” he says.

But the flexibility is only “on the margin,” Maurer says, because of the time required to develop and install customization packages for FMS customers and procurement planning timelines of individual countries.

In addition to FMS deals for the UH-60M, the company is making direct commercial sales of the S-70i international version of the Black Hawk assembled in Poland by subsidiary PZL Mielec.