Company's Self-Funded S-97 May Be Timed Just Right

With news this week that the deficit supercommittee will end in deadlock, triggering automatic cuts in defense spending, Sikorsky's decision to spend its own money to develop the X2 and its military helicopter extensions is looking downright prescient. The company appears to be betting that future helicopter procurement will be bracketed by tight budgets and a need for speed.

Earlier this year Sikorsky tested its X2 Technology Demonstrator, which uses rigid coaxial rotors and a pusher propeller, at speeds up to 250 knots, or 287 MPH. The machine was then retired and presented as a static display at Oshkosh. This month, a mockup of the first proposed military derivative, the S-97 Raider, (pictured in manufacturer photo,) was shown to US Army officials at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, which is home to Army Special Ops Aviation.

The Fay Observer reports that when the actual, flying prototypes are ready, they will tour installations including Fort Bragg, Fort Campbell, Kentucky and Fort Hood in Texas to let military pilots fly the machines and see the difference speed makes. The X2's 250 knots is a whopping 47 percent faster than a Black Hawk. The S-97 Raider is proposed as a light tactical helicopter with multi-role applications, able to carry six assault soldiers, an internal fuel tank, a .50-caliber machine gun or rockets.

In addition to allowing higher speeds, Sikorsky says the suite of technologies demonstrated on the X2 will also make the S-97 quieter, more maneuverable, better in high-and-hot missions common in places such as Afghanistan, and do it all with less workload for single-pilot use.

Sikorsky spokesman Mike Mudd tells the Observer that in 2004, just about the time the Pentagon was canceling Sikorsky's contract to develop the Comanche helicopter for delays and budget overruns, the company looked at long-term strategy.

Mudd recalls, "We decided about eight years ago how do we remain competitive in the future, 30 or 40 years? We want to do everything that the helicopter provides us, but we think the customer is going to desire speed.

"We put a small team of engineers, about 20 to 30 of them (on the project) and said, 'Go figure this problem out. Keep a helicopter, but add the higher speed to it.'

"We want to make sure one guy can fly it and flying is secondary and running a mission is primary."

FMI: www.sikorsky.com/StaticFiles/Sikorsky/Assets/Attachments/NEWSLETTER/military/Frontlines_Q4_2010_issue22.pdf