Lockheed Martin’s (Sikorsky) and Boeing’s (DEFIANT X) for US Army’s Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft Competition
Lockheed Martin Company and Boeing announced
six new members of Team DEFIANT. These supplier teammates will join the team to
support DEFIANT X, the advanced helicopter for the U.S. Army’s Future
Long-Range Assault Aircraft competition.
These companies were selected based on exceptional
performance and experience supporting the U.S. Army’s venerable Black Hawks,
Apaches and Chinooks. The team’s exceptional performance will continue to
ensure efficiency and affordability throughout DEFIANT X’s lifecycle, by
embracing the Army’s Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA) requirements and
continuing to embrace advanced manufacturing techniques already used to design
and manufacture the Army’s current fleet. The team previously announced that
Honeywell will provide its new HTS7500 turbo shaft engine to power DEFIANT X.
“DEFIANT X is the right aircraft, made by the right team, for the Army’s Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft mission,” said Mark Cherry, vice president and general manager of Boeing Vertical Lift. “Leveraging many existing supplier relationships, we’ve put together the best industry team to deliver a purpose-built, low-risk and cost-effective next-generation aircraft that can operate across multiple theaters, well into the future.”
Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Ben Hodges has pointed out “the ability to mass
combat power, infantry and equipment, directly onto the objective, many times
in very tight places… is the key tenet of an air assault operation,” while
remarking that “one of the challenges I had in Afghanistan was getting soldiers
and equipment across mountain ranges or into landing zones at high altitude and
hot temperatures.”
This tracks with my 10 years
of experience as a combat helicopter pilot in Afghanistan and as a
developmental test pilot. Range and speed, though important, are not the most
important criteria. What counts much more is the ability to land on the
objective and mass combat power incredibly quickly – including supporting
equipment, fires, and vehicles – and survive while you do it. Landing troops in
waves because your assets can’t mass them safely in the landing zone is a
recipe for mission failure.
One of the aircraft under
consideration for Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft, Defiant-X, completed the confined area landings
mission profile – including a 247-knot level ingress,
rapid, level deceleration, and a vertical landing in an H-60-sized landing
zone.
“Team DEFIANT is building a strong nationwide
supply chain to provide the Army a transformational aircraft,” said Paul Lemmo,
president of Sikorsky. “This team and its proven experience will ensure that DEFIANT
X is a low-risk, reliable and survivable aircraft for our Soldiers and the
Army’s long-range assault mission.”
Also this week, the Lockheed Martin
Sikorsky-Boeing SB>1 DEFIANT helicopter arrived in Nashville to give U.S.
Army Aviators a first-hand look at this impressive aircraft at the Army
Aviation Association of America’s annual summit. Army aviators at the summit
will be able to see how Team DEFIANT is revolutionizing Future Vertical Lift,
one of the Army’s top modernization priorities, with a focus on transforming
the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft program’s capabilities, production and
sustainment resulting in lower-life cycle costs. The result is DEFIANT X a
complete weapon system that builds on the handling qualities and capabilities
proven by the team’s technology demonstrator, SB>1 DEFIANT. The contract
award for the U.S. Army’s Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft is expected this
year. Together, Sikorsky and Boeing have built 90 percent of the U.S. Army’s
current military rotorcraft and have totaled more than 15 million flight hours.
We’re the team that has brought forward iconic military rotorcraft including:
Black Hawk, Chinook and Apache. The iconic UH-60 Black Hawk has proven itself
to be the premiere assault platform in the world and DEFIANT X will bring the
next level of capability that the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft requires.
On the choice of Future
Long-Range Assault Aircraft itself, the manufacturer must have a portfolio of
military projects to sustain operations without depending on the Future
Long-Range Assault Aircraft program. It should also have a mature digital
design, production, and sustainment capability with reach back across all
Services. Between the two Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft competitors, only
Sikorsky builds aircraft supporting all Services and has a mature digital
thread integrated into the design, production, and sustainment processes.
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