June 20, 2009: Although Brazil bought a billion dollars worth of European Cougar helicopters for military use, it is buying four American UH-60L Blackhawks for Air Force search and rescue work. The Eurocopter Cougar EC725 is an 11 ton aircraft with a useful load of 5.5 tons, a top speed of 324 kilometers an hour, a range of about 850 kilometers and can stay in the air for about five hours per sortie. The UH-60L is about the same size as the Cougar, but is outfitted for all-weather operations and rescue work. Colombia has some of them, and they may have influenced the preference for the UH-60L in neighboring Brazil, which will pay about $16 million each for their UH-60Ls.