Ongoing US efforts to develop the next generation of battlefield helicopters, for the 2030s and beyond, will not be able to address future requirements or combat emerging threats, according to a senior Dutch air force official.
“So far I am not impressed or convinced that the current plans are advanced enough to survive use past 2030,” Lt Gen Alexander Schnitger, commander of the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) told a rotorcraft conference in London on 14 September.
The US Department of Defense is currently engaged in a risk reduction phase, the so-called Joint Multi-Role – Technology Demonstrator (JMR-TD), that sees two contenders – Bell Helicopter and a joint Sikorsky/Boeing team – manufacturing flying prototypes ahead of the eventual Future Vertical Lift (FVL) programme.
Production of a platform selected under FVL is scheduled to begin in 2030, according to the Department of Defense’s timeline.
However, Schnitger criticises both proposals – Bell’s V-280 Valor tiltrotor and the Sikorsky/Boeing coaxial rotor and pusher prop-equipped SB-1 Defiant – as “based on 1980s technology that has been refreshed a little bit”.
“Is that really, really the cutting edge? Is that truly disruptive vertical lift technology? When I look at the FVL designs, I see today’s technology being incrementally improved for the future. I would like to start with the future and decide how to get there,” he says.
“I can’t imagine that in a war in 2040, which will be fought in a fundamentally different way, that the role of the helicopter will remain unchanged.”
He argues that some of FVL’s basic requirements, such as a cruise speed of around 230kt (425km/h), will be insufficient for future conflicts.
Despite his concerns, Schnitger warns that European helicopter manufacturers risk being left behind by their US rivals, as they “are lacking the benefit of a clear European objective”.
However, they can still play a “leading role” in the future, he says. Providing they are able to “look past national interests”, together, “they [Airbus Helicopters and AgustaWestland] could become a serious competitor” to US firms, he believes.
In addition, Schnitger cautions against procurement models that are slow to deliver urgently needed capabilities, noting: “Future aircraft will have to be developed and built in a much shorter timeframe.”
Meanwhile, the two prototypes being produced by the Bell and Sikorsky/Boeing teams are coming together ahead of maiden sorties scheduled for 2017.
Keith Flail, director of JMR and FVL at Bell, says its V-280 has passed the critical design review milestone and manufacturing of long-lead items is under way. The Spirit Aerosystems-built fuselage is expected to roll-out next week, with delivery to Bell following shortly after.
For its part, the SB-1 is still in “detailed design”, with the critical design review “some time later this year” says Patrick Donnelly, programme director for FVL at Boeing.
The picture is made more complicated by the likely acquisition of Sikorsky by Lockheed Martin, with the latter already a key part of Bell’s Team Valor, developing the V-280.
Flail says he is unconcerned by the move, although he says Bell has amended its teaming agreement to reflect the change.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
