Sikorsky Plans 1st Flight For S-97 Helicopter

[Hakan]

Sikorsky plans late-2014 first flight for S-97

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Key Points

• The high-speed helicopter is being developed entirely with private funding
• Sikorsky now has 50 industry partners, and 38 of those have invested funds in the effort

United Technologies' Sikorsky Aircraft unit plans to fly its developmental S-97 Raider high-speed helicopter by 1 December, officials at the companies West Palm Beach, Florida, facility told reporters on 5 May.

Reporters viewed a nearly complete S-97 in a Sikorsky production hangar. A transmission and drive train, including a General Electric CT7 engine, are still to be installed.

Sikorsky started final assembly of the prototype, which features a co-axial rotor design, in September 2013. The company plans to spend approximately USD200 million on the development. Sikorsky currently boasts 50 industry partners on the self-funded effort, 38 of those being "investing partners", according to company officials.

Sikorsky is also using the technology, along with partner Boeing, as a basis from which to develop a high-speed rigid rotor co-axial design for the army's Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator (JMR TD) programme. The JMR TD is the precursor to the army's estimated USD100 billion Future Vertical Lift (FVL) programme, which is meant to replace the army's UH-60 Black Hawk utility helicopters and AH-64 Apache attack helicopters.

The S-97 offers a variety of technologies drawn from the company's X2 technology demonstrator. Its composite fuselage was developed by Aurora Flight Sciences and consists of an integrated cockpit, cabin, and tail cone. The prototype also features counter-rotating main rotor blades for lift and forward flight, and a pusher propeller for high-speed acceleration and deceleration.

Sikorsky first tested the co-axial design in 2010 on the X2 demonstrator, at which time the helicopter demonstrated a 250 kt flight speed, which is about twice that of conventional helicopters. The X2 also provided an opportunity to develop low acoustic signature technology, according to Sikorsky. Company officials said the Raider prototype will improve on the X2, demonstrating a capacity to conduct precision manoeuvres at low speed, as well as high-G turning manoeuvres at more than 200 kt and engage in hot-day hover performance at altitudes of up to 10,000 ft.

Sikorsky plans late-2014 first flight for S-97 - IHS Jane's 360

 

[Americandissident]

The high-speed helicopter is being developed entirely with private funding

Wish we would of made Lockheed Martin do that before signing that "concurrent, buy before you try " deal. Good on Sikorsky for having at least some ethics!

 

[Indus Falcon]