Sikorsky S-97 Raider Cleared For Full Flight Test Program | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-07.07.25

Airborne-NextGen-07.08.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.09.25

Airborne-FlightTraining-07.10.25

AirborneUnlimited-07.11.25

Wed, Jun 27, 2018

Sikorsky S-97 Raider Cleared For Full Flight Test Program

Experimental Aircraft Had Been Grounded Following A Hard Landing Last Year

The S-97 Raider experimental coaxial helicopter has been cleared to move into a full flight test program with a second prototype aircraft, according to Lockheed Martin.

Defense News reports that the company's vice president for future vertical lift said that the new aircraft began ground testing on april 25 in West Palm Beach, FL.

In a statement June 20, Dan Spoor told Defense News that the aircraft, flown by pilot Bell Fill and John Groth, operated the Raider for 90 minutes during its initial test flight, completing the flight-test card. It marked a "significant milestone" for the program, Spoor said. "We look forward to demonstrating to the U.S. military that high flight speed and extraordinary maneuverability in the hover and low-speed regimes will dramatically change the way that military aviators fly and fight with helicopters," he said.

Sikorsky believes it has resolved the issue with the coaxial rotor system that led to the hard landing last year. It is also being used in the SB-1 Defiant demonstrators which is being developed in conjunction with Boeing for the Army's Joint Multi-Role demonstration. Defiant is expected to fly for the first time by the end of the year.

The Raider aircraft had flown a speeds up to 150 knots before the hard landing incident. Sikorsky says its plan this summer is to push the speed above 200 knots, and expects to achieve speeds well above that benchmark.

(Image provided by Lockheed Martin)

FMI: Original report

Advertisement

More News

NTSB Final Report: Aviat A1

Airplane Bounced About 3 Ft Then Touched Back Down And Then, With No Brakes Applied, The Airplane Began Veering To The Left Analysis: The pilot entered the airport traffic pattern >[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (07.08.25)

Aero Linx: British Microlight Aircraft Association (BMAA) The primary focus within all aviation activity is SAFETY. In all aspects of our sport SAFETY must come first, whether it b>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: Fly Corvair’s Reliable Engine Alternative

From SnF25 (YouTube Edition): William Wynne Builds Practical Aircraft Engines on the Corvair Platform Seeking an affordable alternative to the traditional aircraft engine options, >[...]

ANN FAQ: Contributing To Aero-TV

How To Get A Story On Aero-TV News/Feature Programming How do I submit a story idea or lead to Aero-TV? If you would like to submit a story idea or lead, please contact Jim Campbel>[...]

Classic Aero-TV: CiES Fuel-Quantity and e-Throttle Systems Praised

From 2023 (YouTube Edition): Bridge of CiES CiES Inc. is a Bend, Oregon-based designer and manufacturer of modular embedded aircraft systems and sensors. The company’s fuel-l>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC