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I hesitate to post this as I don't want to give the politicians an excuse not to act on lift needs now because there may be something coming down the pike years from now.
However this concept, a rotorcraft with 16 to 26 tonnes of lift and 150 to 500 nm range at Sea Level to 6000 ft, could have bearing on decisions on the BFS and also on combat vehicles that might be acquired in the future. As I understand it this requirement would create an aircraft with roughly double the lift capacity of something like the Chinook and would permit the slinging of Up-armoured Strykers or even vehicles like the CV90.
US Army Awards Five Agreements for Concept Design & Analysis of Joint Heavy Lift (JHL) Rotorcraft
(Source: US Army; issued Sept. 16, 2005)
The US Army, in cooperation with its Joint Service and NASA partners, announces the award of five agreements/contracts for the Concept Design and Analysis (CDA) of a Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) Joint Heavy Lift, (JHL) rotorcraft.
The purpose of the CDA activity is to define the "art of the possible", the "science of the probable" and the "design of the affordable" for a JHL VTOL rotorcraft that enables future joint concepts of operations (CONOPS). These include such things as conducting mounted and dismounted vertical envelopment; executing operational maneuver and sustainment operations at extended ranges simultaneously into unprepared, complex terrain locations under extreme environmental conditions, 24/7; and overcoming enemy anti-access strategies from land and sea bases as part of joint expeditionary operations.
The CDA is part of the overall multi-year (FY05-07) JHL Concept Refinement effort. It is primarily focused on supporting the joint requirements definition process. The CDA is the technical pillar of activity designed to inform the joint requirements analysis with credible rotorcraft design concepts and performance projections that can reasonably be matured to a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 6 by 2012.
The five CDA awards, made under the Army's Aviation Applied Technology Directorate (AATD) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) W911W6-05-R-0004, are for the conceptual/preliminary design of a baseline aircraft, and specific design excursions, to identify the impact of variations in payload, range, environmental conditions, and shipboard compatibility on aircraft size, performance, operational suitability, cost, schedule, and development risk.
The baseline design specification is to maneuver an FCS/Stryker/LAV Vehicle over a 250 nautical mile (nm) radius, under 4000 foot density altitude and 950 Fahrenheit (4k95) conditions, from/to land or sea bases and operating areas. Eight specific excursions to these conditions will also be investigated that include lighter and heavier cargo (16 - 26 tons), shorter and longer mission radii (210 - 500 nm), more extreme environmental conditions (6k95), and full compatibility with a future ship. These design variations populate the desired trade space in the joint requirements process.
The five concept vehicles chosen for this effort, listed in order of their design cruise speeds, are: (1) Sikorsky X2C, X2 Technology Crane - coaxial rotor (165 knots); (2) Boeing ATRH, Advanced Tandem Rotor Helicopter (165 knots); (3) Sikorsky X2HSL, X2 Technology High Speed Lifter - advancing blade compound (245 knots); (4) Bell Boeing QTR, Quad Tilt Rotor (275 knots); and (5) Frontier Aircraft OSTR, Optimum Speed Tilt Rotor (310 knots).
These awards are for eighteen months and represent over $30M of Government and Industry contribution. They include the delivery of the designs with substantiating data, a specification document, a technology development strategy, and cost/schedule estimates for a Component and Technology Demonstration phase to achieve TRL 6 in an appropriately large-scale flight vehicle. Award of any future JHL development activity, should it occur, is separate and independent of this BAA .
The five concept vehicles chosen for this effort, listed in order of their design cruise speeds, are:
--Sikorsky X2C, X2 Technology Crane - coaxial rotor (165 knots);
--Boeing ATRH, Advanced Tandem Rotor Helicopter (165 knots);
--Sikorsky X2HSL, X2 Technology High Speed Lifter - advancing blade compound (245 knots);
--Bell Boeing QTR, Quad Tilt Rotor (275 knots); and
--Frontier Aircraft OSTR, Optimum Speed Tilt Rotor (310 knots).
These awards are for eighteen months and represent over $30M of Government and Industry contribution. They include the delivery of the designs with substantiating data, a specification document, a technology development strategy, and cost/schedule estimates for a Component and Technology Demonstration phase to achieve TRL 6 in an appropriately large-scale flight vehicle. Award of any future JHL development activity, should it occur, is separate and independent of this BAA.
-ends-
http://www.defense-aerospace.com/cgi-bin/client/modele.pl?session=dae.4308111.1089903978.QPadasOa9dUAAESlMZk&modele=jdc_34
However this concept, a rotorcraft with 16 to 26 tonnes of lift and 150 to 500 nm range at Sea Level to 6000 ft, could have bearing on decisions on the BFS and also on combat vehicles that might be acquired in the future. As I understand it this requirement would create an aircraft with roughly double the lift capacity of something like the Chinook and would permit the slinging of Up-armoured Strykers or even vehicles like the CV90.
US Army Awards Five Agreements for Concept Design & Analysis of Joint Heavy Lift (JHL) Rotorcraft
(Source: US Army; issued Sept. 16, 2005)
The US Army, in cooperation with its Joint Service and NASA partners, announces the award of five agreements/contracts for the Concept Design and Analysis (CDA) of a Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) Joint Heavy Lift, (JHL) rotorcraft.
The purpose of the CDA activity is to define the "art of the possible", the "science of the probable" and the "design of the affordable" for a JHL VTOL rotorcraft that enables future joint concepts of operations (CONOPS). These include such things as conducting mounted and dismounted vertical envelopment; executing operational maneuver and sustainment operations at extended ranges simultaneously into unprepared, complex terrain locations under extreme environmental conditions, 24/7; and overcoming enemy anti-access strategies from land and sea bases as part of joint expeditionary operations.
The CDA is part of the overall multi-year (FY05-07) JHL Concept Refinement effort. It is primarily focused on supporting the joint requirements definition process. The CDA is the technical pillar of activity designed to inform the joint requirements analysis with credible rotorcraft design concepts and performance projections that can reasonably be matured to a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 6 by 2012.
The five CDA awards, made under the Army's Aviation Applied Technology Directorate (AATD) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) W911W6-05-R-0004, are for the conceptual/preliminary design of a baseline aircraft, and specific design excursions, to identify the impact of variations in payload, range, environmental conditions, and shipboard compatibility on aircraft size, performance, operational suitability, cost, schedule, and development risk.
The baseline design specification is to maneuver an FCS/Stryker/LAV Vehicle over a 250 nautical mile (nm) radius, under 4000 foot density altitude and 950 Fahrenheit (4k95) conditions, from/to land or sea bases and operating areas. Eight specific excursions to these conditions will also be investigated that include lighter and heavier cargo (16 - 26 tons), shorter and longer mission radii (210 - 500 nm), more extreme environmental conditions (6k95), and full compatibility with a future ship. These design variations populate the desired trade space in the joint requirements process.
The five concept vehicles chosen for this effort, listed in order of their design cruise speeds, are: (1) Sikorsky X2C, X2 Technology Crane - coaxial rotor (165 knots); (2) Boeing ATRH, Advanced Tandem Rotor Helicopter (165 knots); (3) Sikorsky X2HSL, X2 Technology High Speed Lifter - advancing blade compound (245 knots); (4) Bell Boeing QTR, Quad Tilt Rotor (275 knots); and (5) Frontier Aircraft OSTR, Optimum Speed Tilt Rotor (310 knots).
These awards are for eighteen months and represent over $30M of Government and Industry contribution. They include the delivery of the designs with substantiating data, a specification document, a technology development strategy, and cost/schedule estimates for a Component and Technology Demonstration phase to achieve TRL 6 in an appropriately large-scale flight vehicle. Award of any future JHL development activity, should it occur, is separate and independent of this BAA .
The five concept vehicles chosen for this effort, listed in order of their design cruise speeds, are:
--Sikorsky X2C, X2 Technology Crane - coaxial rotor (165 knots);
--Boeing ATRH, Advanced Tandem Rotor Helicopter (165 knots);
--Sikorsky X2HSL, X2 Technology High Speed Lifter - advancing blade compound (245 knots);
--Bell Boeing QTR, Quad Tilt Rotor (275 knots); and
--Frontier Aircraft OSTR, Optimum Speed Tilt Rotor (310 knots).
These awards are for eighteen months and represent over $30M of Government and Industry contribution. They include the delivery of the designs with substantiating data, a specification document, a technology development strategy, and cost/schedule estimates for a Component and Technology Demonstration phase to achieve TRL 6 in an appropriately large-scale flight vehicle. Award of any future JHL development activity, should it occur, is separate and independent of this BAA.
-ends-
http://www.defense-aerospace.com/cgi-bin/client/modele.pl?session=dae.4308111.1089903978.QPadasOa9dUAAESlMZk&modele=jdc_34
