Defense News reports, “The U.S. Army’s future long-range aircraft is moving out of technology development and into the critical engineering and manufacturing development phase, the service announced Friday. The Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft program, or FLRAA, is estimated to be worth approximately $70 billion across its lifespan, including foreign military sales, and is set to replace roughly 2,000 Black Hawk utility helicopters.”
Full Story (Defense News)
Tag: Tilt-Rotor
GE Aerospace Chosen to Provide Digital Backbone for Bell V-280 Valor
FlightGlobal reports that “GE Aerospace will provide digital backbone, voice and data recorder, and health awareness system for Bell V-280 Valor, which the US Army selected as its next-generation troop carrying aircraft.”
Full Story (FlightGlobal)
Japanese Authorities Hand Over Pieces of Wreckage from USAF Osprey Crash
The AP reported, “Japanese authorities handed over pieces of the wreckage from an U.S. Air Force Osprey that crashed off southwestern Japan to the U.S. military on Sunday, as the search continued for seven missing servicemembers.” The wreckage “had been collected by a ship from the regional coast guard headquarters and by fishers from the town of Yakushima since the CV-22 aircraft crashed into the water near the town Wednesday during a training mission to Okinawa.”
Full Story (The AP)
Air Force Special Operations Command Grounding Fleet of Osprey Tilt-Rotor Aircraft
The Hill reports the US Air Force Special Operations Command “has grounded its entire fleet of CV-22 Ospreys due to two recent safety incidents involving the aircraft’s clutch.” The decision “stems from an ‘increased number of safety incidents’ involving the Ospreys, including two in the past six weeks and a total of four since 2017.” The decision to ground the aircraft “follows two accidents that killed nine Marines earlier this year involving the Marine Corps’ MV-22B version of the aircraft.”
Full Story (The Hill)