Boeing and Sikorsky submit joint proposal for JMR FVL aircraft
NewsJanuary 18, 2013
WASHINGTON. Boeing and Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation have signed a teaming agreement to submit a joint proposal for the U.S. Army Aviation Applied Technology Directorate’s Joint Multi-Role (JMR) Technology Demonstrator (TD) Phase 1 program. The JMR TD will support the Department of Defense (DoD) Future Vertical Lift (FVL) program for affordable, reliable, and high-performance next-generation medium-lift rotorcraft, perhaps the size of today’s Black Hawks and Apache helicopters.
Sikorsky and Boeing will compete with one another to build and fly demonstrator aircraft, which will be evaluated in 2017 for the vertical lift performance of medium-lift-sized aircraft. Commenting on the teaming agreement, President of Boeing Military Aircraft Chris Chadwick said, "Our combined technical strengths and our collective program management expertise make this partnership an exciting development in meeting the Army's JMR program objectives.”
The FVL program aims to create an aircraft that is faster, requires a smaller logistical footprint, and can carry more weight than the Army’s current aircraft are capable of. Current concepts of rotary-wing vehicles for the FVL are speculated to be capable of speeds in excess of 300 knots.
