Paul Derby
John Armbrust's eyes light up when he starts to talk about flying the Boeing Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche scout/attack helicopter.
The chief US Army test pilot, part of a four-man test team for prototype 1, says no other helicopter comes close to matching the aircraft's performance characteristics.
"The way this helicopter flies right now is impressive enough, but we're not even close to optimising the flight control system yet.
"When you talk about handling and stealth technology, Comanche is going to be in a different league."
Operating out of the Sikorsky's West Palm Beach, Florida, testing facility, the combined team of Boeing, Sikorsky and US Army test pilots have been expanding the flight envelope of the RAH-66.
Armbrust says the aircraft has achieved speeds of 172kt (320km/h) in level flight and 204kt in a dive at a nose down angle of 8í.
The aircraft has also flown sideward and rearward manoeuvres at speeds of 60-75kt. "That's almost twice what the most agile helicopters around at the moment are capable of," he adds.
The number one prototype has recorded 105h of flight time and will resume flight testing this month, while prototype 2 is expected to make its first flight in April next year.
"The development of this aircraft has been so different," says Armbrust. "The US Army has people right alongside the guys from Boeing and Sikorsky all the time. They are together at every design review and they go to the simulator up at Stratford.
"It really is the first helicopter designed by aviators for aviators. We know exactly what is happening and the final product will be as close to what the users actually want as possible.
"As far as the stealth capability is concerned, our aim is that the first time a target will know the Comanche exists is when it locks on to the radar signal from our Hellfire missiles."
KEEPING
The US Army is keeping figures on the observability of the Comanche under wraps, but the aircraft is believed to be 200 times more difficult to spot in a battlefield situation than the AH-64 Apache.
Armbrust works alongside Sikorsky test pilots Ross Stiles and Nick Lappos, together with Boeing pilot Reggie Murrell, to put prototype 1 through its paces.
Source: Flight Daily News
