With its trademark tiltrotors too big for the Army’s FARA requirement, Bell is squeezing every ounce of performance out of a helicopter. Will it be fast enough?
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.New Army mounted system won’t play favorites when it comes to C5ISR, EW and A-PNT
The CMOSS Mounted Form Factor will facilitate tech insertion for new capabilities while co-existing with the Mounted Family of Computer Systems.
Leaked extracts from an Army review tell only part of the story, a 12-year saga of extensive research, development, and testing, the company argues.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
Rebuffed by the Army and GAO in its bid to re-engine aging helicopters, ATEC has gone over their heads to Congress and asked legislators for a second chance.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
Awards for Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft designs went to Bell, Boeing, Karem, Sikorsky, and a partnership of AVX and L-3.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
Having wasted tens of billions and almost 30 years since the end of the Cold War, the Army is out of time. But after decades of incremental improvements, its existing weapons — including the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter that GE’s new engine will upgrade – are overweight, underpowered, and running out of room to grow. Meanwhile, the Army’s attempts at a high-tech great leap forward kept getting cancelled as unaffordable, unfeasible, or both.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
WASHINGTON: At least a dozen major Army weapons programs face big decisions in 2019. The service will launch a competition for new armored vehicles; award development contracts for scout aircraft and helicopter engines; conduct key tests of long-range missiles, anti-aircraft defenses, rifles, targeting goggles, and multiple battlefield networks; and field new electronics for command posts.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
AMARILLO, TEX.: Bell Helicopter is so confident in their new V-280 tilt-rotor prototype that they want the Pentagon to accelerate the Future Vertical Lift program – which they think the V-280 will win – by “five to eight years.” [Click here for our head-to-head comparison of the V-280 and its rival, the Sikorsky-Boeing SB>1] That…
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.
Gray Eagle is the low-cost, low-risk answer to Army modernization
Gray Eagle STOL and Gray Eagle 25M are the best options for Army aviation as it assesses where to move from its current inflection point.
Critics say the Army could end up wasting billions by developing a better engine for its Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk and Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopters even as the joint Future Vertical Lift (FVL) initiative gets underway to replace those aircraft. The critics are wrong, program officials assure us. But the critics still disagree. A new Army…
By Richard Whittle
Army aviation’s “top modernization priority program” – at least that’s what they call it – took another baby step forward this week. The service awarded preliminary design review contracts to the two competitors vying to build a better engine to power the service’s vast fleet of Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk and Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopters.…
By Richard Whittle
After more than seven years of designing and testing how to make new, more powerful, and incredibly fuel efficient engines for its AH-64 Apache attack helicopters and UH-60 Black Hawk utility birds, the Army has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP). The Army’s “top aviation priority” thus takes a baby step closer to becoming a…
By Richard Whittle
VIRGINIA BEACH, VA.: You’re the Army and you really, really want a new, more powerful and efficient engine for most of your helicopter fleet. It’s really urgent. But you’re not going to get those engines for your UH-60 Black Hawk and AH-64 Apache helicopters for at least another 11 years. What’s the reason? Good old…
By Richard Whittle
With the Association of the US Army’s annual conference starting Monday, there is no better time for an analysis of the top modernization program for Army aviation. And we’ve got one of the top experts on helicopters providing the commentary, Mike Hirschberg of the American Helicopter Society International. Should the Army plow ahead with an engine upgrade…
By Mike Hirschberg