I love the Lockheed RAIDER, shown here. I'm lovin' the counter-rotating blades and that TAIL PROP for some extra kick!:
This one was NOT chosen.
Posted on 12/15/2022 2:13:20 PM PST by Rummyfan
The U.S. Army has announced that it’s next helicopter isn’t a helicopter.
The US Army awarded Textron Inc’s Bell unit with the contract to build the next-generation helicopter, ending years of fierce competition between Lockheed Martin Corp.-Boeing Co. to replace the aging fleet of Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawks by 2030.
The Army’s “Future Vertical Lift” award went to Bell’s V-280 Valor tiltrotor aircraft, similar to the V-22 Osprey. The new aircraft can take off and land vertically like a helicopter but rotate massive props to fly like a fixed-wing aircraft at impressive speeds.
Indeed, the specs are pretty impressive:
General characteristics
Crew: 4
Capacity: 14 troops
Length: 50.5 ft (15.4 m)
Width: 81.79 ft (24.93 m)
Height: 23 ft 0 in (7 m)
Empty weight: 18,078 lb (8,200 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 30,865 lb (14,000 kg)
Powerplant: 2 × Rolls-Royce AE 1107F[54] turboshaft
Propellers: 35 ft 0 in (10.7 m) diameter
Performance
Cruise speed: 320 mph (520 km/h, 280 kn)
Combat range: 580–920 mi (930–1,480 km, 500–800 nmi)
Ferry range: 2,400 mi (3,900 km, 2,100 nmi)
Service ceiling: 6,000 ft (1,800 m) ; in hover out of ground effect at 95 °F (35 °C)
Disk loading: 16[55] lb/sq ft (78 kg/m2)
(Excerpt) Read more at battleswarmblog.com ...
How many can fit on a C-5?
Rolls Royce power.
AE1107F
You may not need so many C5’s
Useless, unnecessary, A load of political corruption crp.
-fJRoberts_
“Service ceiling: 6,000 ft (1,800 m) ; in hover out of ground effect at 95 °F (35 °C)”
I read that cruise altitude is 11,500 feet. Both seem to limit areas of operation.
I love the Lockheed RAIDER, shown here. I'm lovin' the counter-rotating blades and that TAIL PROP for some extra kick!:
This one was NOT chosen.
They push this idea of triple redundant systems in the literature, but the entire design is necessarily more fragile than a helo or a fixed wing turboprop because of the number and location of the moving parts.
Can it perform a medevac in a hot LZ? Can it lift vertically with only one rotor? The geometry means all weapons have to be on the fuselage belly or inside the body, nothing on the wings. The tilting movement of the fuselage when accelerating also presents a vulnerability of the aircraft and limits to defensive weapons during dustoff. Hopefully medevac drones will bridge this gap before it gets tested in battle.
With a ferry range over 2,000 miles, maybe not, but then they will just wear out sooner. Also much wider than the Blackhawk, limiting where it can land. Seems like they would still need helos for medivac & search and rescue.
That tail seems huge.
How many can fit on a C-5?
dozens
How about the Army buying both for versatility and promoting more competition between contractors?
Service ceiling: 6,000 ft? That’s not even enough to get off the ground here.
Funny thing is, their video shows it flying way above a bunch of mountains. Something does not add up here.
Funny thing is, their video shows it flying way above a bunch of mountains. Something does not add up here.
Needs a cloaking device!
I picked HD-DVD over BluRay. But we weren’t the ones that made the wrong choice.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.