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‘While the RAH-66 was being perfected, the armed drone came along and did the job of the Comanche better, and cheaper,’ Damien Leimbach, former Avionics Technician at US Air Force

The Comanche was a twin-turbine, two-seat (tandem) armed reconnaissance helicopter with projected missions of armed reconnaissance, light attack, and air combat.

Boeing and Sikorsky teamed to develop and build the RAH-66 Comanche armed reconnaissance helicopter in 1991.

Designed to replace the US Army’s then-current Vietnam War-vintage scout and light attack helicopter fleet, the Comanche featured an all-composite fuselage, fully integrated digital flight controls, and advanced navigation and weapons systems. It was designed to provide U.S. forces with accurate, timely tactical intelligence.

First deliveries were scheduled for 2006, with the Comanche program reaching full production by about 2010. Plans were to manufacture 1,213 RAH-66s for US Army service. The Army canceled the program in February 2004 as a part of a reorganization of Army Aviation.

By then, the Comanche program validated several aircraft systems and components and built and flew two flight-test prototype aircraft in its demonstration, validation, and prototype phase from contract award in 1991 through 2000. The engineering and manufacturing development phase began in mid-2000. During that time, the program was slated to build and deliver 13 new Comanches for additional flight tests and US Army operational tests, evaluation, and training.

So, why did the US Army abandon the RAH-66 even though it had nearly finished the research and development phase and produced two prototypes?

‘The Comanche was envisioned as being a stealth helicopter for battlefield scouting purposes, and to take shots at targets of opportunity without them even knowing it was there,’ explains Damien Leimbach, former Avionics Technician at US Air Force (2001–2007), on Quora.

‘While it had a problematic development cycle, it probably would have worked just fine.

‘However, while it was being perfected, another product came along and did the job of the Comanche better, and cheaper.

‘The Armed Drone.

‘It goes higher, sees better, loiters FAR longer over the battlefield, can survey hundreds of times more area in one mission, is harder to spot in the air, and doesn’t risk pilots.

‘The Comanche wasn’t as good of an attack helicopter as either the Apache or Super Cobra, and wasn’t as good for low-key surveillance as the predator and other drones like it.’

Leimbach concludes;

‘Bottom line, we just didn’t need it.’

The two prototypes are now in the collection of the US Army Aviation Museum at Fort Rucker, Alabama.

Photo by: U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army

“These test flights are part of our continuing demonstration of how DEFIANT supports the Army’s missions of massing combat power on the objective area,” Jay Macklin, Director of Business Development, Lockheed Martin Sikorsky Army, Future Vertical Lift and Innovations

As the video in this post shows, in three demonstrations during the same flight, the Lockheed Martin Sikorsky-Boeing SB>1 DEFIANT helicopter demonstrated it is not only maneuverable, survivable, and fast, but also provides the critical external lift capability of traditional rotorcraft. With DEFIANT X, the team’s offering for the US Army’s Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA), crews will deliver troops and cargo to the objective (also known as the “X”) in future combat at twice the speed and range of the current fleet.

During the tests, the dual-engine DEFIANT demonstrated single-engine operations which highlighted the added survivability of the aircraft should an engine sustain combat damage.

“These test flights are part of our continuing demonstration of how DEFIANT supports the Army’s missions of massing combat power on the objective area,” said Jay Macklin, a retired Army Colonel, and Air Assault Task Force Commander and business development director of Sikorsky Army, Future Vertical Lift and Innovations, in a Lockheed Martin news release. “During INDOPACOM operations, DEFIANT X’s reach and unsurpassed demonstrated payload capability, enables not only long-range Air Assault operations, but also ship-to-shore sustainment at extended distances well outside the reach of threat capabilities. DEFIANT X is a highly maneuverable aircraft that not only gets you to the fight but allows you to bring the fight with you, fitting into landing zones that currently accommodate the UH-60 BLACK HAWK.”

Sikorsky chief test pilot Bill Fell, a retired US Army Master aviator, described the recent tests, which occurred at the company’s development flight center in West Palm Beach, Florida:

• Achieved ADS-33 Level One: DEFIANT flew slalom maneuvers at three different speeds between 60 knots and 100 knots. DEFIANT easily achieved ADS-33 level one tolerance during the final run on the 500-foot-gate course as required by the aeronautical design standard slalom course, Fell said.

“Many rotorcraft struggle with this maneuver, but DEFIANT performed flawlessly,” Fell said. “It was the easiest I have completed this task, having flown it in roughly 10 different rotorcraft. This will provide warfighters an advantage when maneuvering to avoid and evade enemy forces.”

• External Load Lift and Flight: DEFIANT continued its external load lift testing (previous testing included lifting 5,300 pounds) and traveled out of the test yard with an external load. Using a cargo hook, DEFIANT took a 3,400-pound load away from the airfield and then returned it a short time later. Carrying the external load, DEFIANT reached speeds near 100 knots and a 20-degree angle of bank out-of-the-yard flight with external load for an X2™ technology aircraft.

“This capability will allow Army units to move equipment or build Forward Operating Bases with DEFIANT like they do today,” Fell said. “These sorties will, however, be faster as the return trip for the next load will happen at X2 speed – twice the speed of a Black Hawk.”

• Single Engine Demonstration: To demonstrate one aspect of DEFIANT’s survivability, the pilots placed one engine in idle at 100 knots and completed an approach to a hover, hover, and landing at a mission representative weight, Fell explained.

“Hovering with one engine – which is a real scenario our troops could face if an engine sustained combat damage – is another example of how we bring the Sikorsky motto into all our aircraft ‘pioneering flight solutions that bring people home everywhere, every time,’” Fell said.

“Through our recent flight test progress, we are truly seeing the transformational capability that DEFIANT X offers and how it will change the game for the U.S. Army,” said Heather McBryan, Boeing director of business development for future vertical lift programs. “It’s amazing what you can see when you put a design into an operationally relevant test environment. We are even more confident in the vision that we had when we chose the X2 design for the FLRAA mission.”

SB>1 DEFIANT is the technology demonstrator proving out transformational capabilities for the DEFIANT X weapon system, the Sikorsky-Boeing team offering for the US Army’s FLRAA competition as part of the Army’s Future Vertical Lift program. DEFIANT X will enable crews to fly low and fast through complex terrain, where Army aviators spend most of their time. It will extend the capabilities of Army Aviation on the modern battlefield – and is designed to fit in the same footprint as a BLACK HAWK.

DEFIANT X incorporates Sikorsky’s X technology to operate at high speeds while maintaining low-speed handling qualities. This critical capability provides pilots with increased maneuverability and survivability in high-threat environments, allowing them to penetrate enemy defenses while reducing exposure to enemy fire. DEFIANT X’s coaxial rotor system and pusher prop allow for a high degree of maneuverability in and around the objective which is also directly linked to survivability.

Photo by: Lockheed Martin

The Royal Canadian Air Force has determined that cracks that appeared in the tail booms of its CH-148 fleet were due to local stresses caused by the equipment installed there

The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) has determined that cracks that appeared in the tail booms of its CH-148 fleet were due to local stresses caused by the equipment installed there, Alert 5 first noted.

In a statement on Jan. 31, 2022, Canada’s Department of National Defence said its technicians and Cyclone manufacturer, Sikorsky Aircraft, made an “initial determination” that equipment on the tail sections of the aircraft was too heavy to be supported in flight, thereby causing the cracking, CBC News reported.

It directed questions about the cracks to Sikorsky.

As we have previously reported, cracks were found in 21 of the 23 Cyclones with the first crack being found during routine maintenance of a CH-148 Cyclone helicopter on Nov. 26, 2021.

The fleet was grounded while plans were made on how to proceed with repairs.

Sikorsky spokesperson John Dorrian told CBC News the cracks “are the result of local stresses caused by the electronic support measures and [satellite/communications] antenna mounts, which were not previously anticipated.”

According to Dorrian, the S-92 has not experienced the same cracking issues because it does not have the same electronic support measures and antenna mounts as the Cyclone.

Repairs on the Cyclones have been ongoing at 12 Wing Shearwater near Dartmouth, NS, with each aircraft’s cracking requiring a “unique solution,” said the Defense Department.

As of Jan. 28, 11 of the Cyclones had been repaired, with an additional four undergoing repairs.

The department also said in its statement that the repairs are not permanent fixes.

The military is working with Sikorsky to establish a “final determination” of the cause of the cracks by the end of February before creating a permanent solution to the issue, Dorrian said.

“The long-term solution will take into account these load paths, mitigate the local stress at these interfaces, and eliminate the cause of the cracking,” Dorrian said in an email.

Sikorsky and Canada’s Department of National Defence, lead a team that has designed, built, and configured the CH-148 Cyclone for anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare (ASuW), maritime search and rescue (SAR), overland operations and utility missions.

Based on the Sikorsky S-92, as Canada’s first true intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) helicopter, the fly-by-wire Cyclone is equipped with a fully integrated mission system, modern sensors, and a multi-mission cabin — providing a quantum leap in maritime helicopter capability.

Entry into service with the Royal Canadian Air Force occurred in mid-2018 aboard one of the Royal Canadian Navy’s Halifax-class frigates.

The full operational capability of the fleet is scheduled for 2022.

In 2020 six members of the Canadian military were killed when a Cyclone crashed in the waters off Greece because of a glitch with the autopilot function.

The Defense Department said in its statement the Air Force has a “robust flight safety culture,” and it is not uncommon for issues to be found early in the life cycle of new aircraft, such as the Cyclones.

“There is no immediate safety hazard, and we have complete confidence in the immediate solution being implemented,” the department said.

“The fleet continues to be operational and will be monitored and tested on a regular basis in accordance with our airworthiness program.”

Photo by Dennis Jarvis from Halifax, Canada via Wikipedia

These flights validate Defiant’s relevancy to the Army’s mission, providing agility at the objective (also known as the “X”), and increased survivability, all while reducing pilot workload

Lockheed Martin Sikorsky-Boeing SB>1 Defiant completed Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) mission profile test flights, including confined area landings and low-level flight operations. These flights validate Defiant’s relevancy to the Army’s mission, providing agility at the objective (also known as the “X”), and increased survivability, all while reducing pilot workload.

“We fully demonstrated Defiant’s ability to execute the FLRAA mission profile by flying 236 knots in level flight, then reducing thrust on the propulsor to rapidly decelerate as we approached the confined, and unimproved, landing zone,” said Bill Fell, Defiant chief flight test pilot at Sikorsky and a retired US Army Master aviator, in a Lockheed Martin Sikorsky news release. “This type of level body deceleration allowed us to maintain situational awareness and view the landing zone throughout the approach and landing without the typical nose-up helicopter deceleration. This confined area was extremely tight, requiring us to delay descent until nearly over the landing spot, followed by a near-vertical drop. We landed Defiant precisely on the objective with little effort as we descended into this narrow hole while maintaining clearance on all sides.”

SB>1 Defiant is the technology demonstrator proving out transformational capabilities for the Defiant X weapon system, the Sikorsky-Boeing team offering for the US Army’s FLRAA competition as part of the Army’s Future Vertical Lift program. Defiant X will enable crews to fly low and fast through complex terrain, where Army aviators spend most of their time. It will extend the capabilities of Army Aviation on the modern battlefield – and is designed to fit in the same footprint as a Black Hawk. With Defiant X, the US Army will deliver troops and cargo in future combat at twice the range of the current fleet.

“It’s what we call building combat power rapidly, and aircraft like the Defiant X can do that,” said Tony Crutchfield, retired US Army Lieutenant General and now vice president of Army Systems at Boeing. “In the Pacific, it’s even more important because your lines of operation are going to be dispersed over a wide area; you’re going to have these small bases and supply lines that’ll be positioned either on ships or on islands. You’re going to want to move more assets, maneuver in confined terrain and survive to build that combat power faster than your adversary can – so you can win.”

Defiant X incorporates Sikorsky X2 Technology to operate at high speeds while maintaining low-speed handling qualities. This critical capability provides pilots with increased maneuverability and survivability in high-threat environments, allowing them to penetrate enemy defenses while reducing exposure to enemy fire. Defiant X’s X2 coaxial rotor system and pusher prop allow for a high degree of maneuverability in and around the objective which is also directly linked to survivability.

Air assault is the movement of ground-based military forces by vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft—such as the helicopter—to seize and hold key terrain that has not been fully secured, and to directly engage enemy forces behind enemy lines. In addition to regular infantry training, air assault units usually receive training in rappelling, fast-rope techniques, and air transportation, and their equipment is sometimes designed or field-modified to allow better transportation within aircraft.

The US Army field manual FM 1-02 (FM 101-5-1) describes an “air assault operation” as an operation in which assault forces (combat, combat support, and combat service support), using the firepower, mobility, and total integration of helicopter assets, maneuver on the battlefield under the control of the ground or air maneuver commander to engage and destroy enemy forces or to seize and hold key terrain, usually behind enemy lines.

Due to the transport load restrictions of helicopters, air assault forces are usually light infantry, though some armored fighting vehicles, like the Russian BMD-1, are designed to fit most heavy-lift helicopters, which enables assaulting forces to combine air mobility with a certain degree of ground mechanization. Invariably, the assaulting troops are highly dependent on aerial fire support provided by the armed helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft escorting them.

The following video features Defiant’s latest flight testing.

Photo by Lockheed Martin Sikorsky-Boeing

‘Those Japanese choppers hovered all day, just for fun. The kind of fun you only get in the military,’ said Michael Alapaki, a former US Navy enlisted aircrew

For a helicopter, hovering means that it is in flight at a constant altitude, with no forward, aft, or sideways movement. In order to hover, a helicopter must produce enough lift in its main rotor blades to equal the weight of the aircraft.

The engine of the helicopter must produce enough power to drive the main rotor, and also to drive whatever type of anti-torque system is being used.

The ability of a helicopter to hover is affected by many things, including whether or not it is on the ground effect, the density altitude of the air, the available power from the engine, and how heavily loaded it is.

How long can a helicopter hover in place?

‘When the Navy stationed me at the US Naval Air Facility called Atsugi Kaigun Kichi in 1979, the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force [Japanese Navy] shared the base with us,’ Michael Alapaki, former US Navy enlisted aircrew who served aboard 5 carriers, recalls on Quora.

‘Every day, the Japanese helicopter rescue squadron put a ship in the middle of the airfield, it lifted up about 20–30 feet, and sat there, hovering from breakfast to lunch, and then again for the whole afternoon.

‘Didn’t matter what the wind was doing. That chopper hovered in place, all day long. For practice, I guess.’

Alapaki continues;

‘While I was stationed in Japan, I decided to train for a private pilot certificate, and I flew little Cessna’s.

‘One of the final tests was to fly solo, by myself, on a long cross-country flight over 200 miles, and land at several airfields.

‘An hour into the flight, concerned about my fuel state, I lined up to land at a Japanese helicopter base called UTSONOMIYA.

‘When I looked straight ahead to the runway, this was what I saw.

‘Musta been half the JN army [Japan Ground Self-Defense Force AKA Japanese Army] choppers hovering over the field I needed to land on. CRAP! Pucker factor 9.

‘So I made sure they knew I was coming, eyeballed a thread-the-needle route between the choppers to the runway, and held my breath.

‘I landed, got a signature proving I was there, and took off for the rest of my cross country, soon to be over water, to land on a tiny dot just at the inside edge of my fuel reserve.’

Alapaki concludes;

‘Those Japanese choppers hovered all day, just for fun. The kind of fun you only get in the military.’

Photo by Derek Webster / U.S. Navy, U.S. Army, and Japan Self-Defense Forces