Another Pie in the Sky "Game Changer" Program Sticks Around a While Longer

Bell has been given funding under Phase 1B of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's (DARPA) Speed and Runway Independent Technologies (SPRINT) X-Plane program.

Bell will move on from Phase 1A, where it completed a conceptual design review, and will now move on to "preliminary design efforts" for the SPRINT X-Plane. SPRINT aims to "design, build, and fly an X-Plane" aimed at a "transformational combination of aircraft speed and runway independence for the next generation of air mobility platforms". Translated from DARPAspeak, the Agency wants to make use of all those cool vertical-takeoff aircraft they see in magazines.

While much of the time these nifty pie-in-the-sky projects come to little more than some fun press releases and an aborted project at the end of their funding, there's a tiny chance this time it will be different (but probably not). It's no wonder why a lightweight, instant-thrust, electric aircraft is so attractive to the warfighter, being able to operate in conditions that even the best STOL birds in the service would balk at. 

It's a little less promising to see them try and develop something from scratch while the industry is so young - if developers in the space haven't been able to bring a military-ready eVTOL to market by burning piles of venture capital, it's not too likely DAPRA will be able to bring something into widespread adoption either. But, on the upside, fans of quirky, futuristic aircraft concepts may get some cool eye candy out of the deal, so maybe it's not a total wash in the end. 
 

“Bell is honored to be selected for the next phase of this revolutionary program and ready to execute preliminary design,” said Jason Hurst, executive vice president, Engineering, Bell. “We completed our initial risk reduction efforts with our sled test demonstration at Holloman Air Force Base, and we look forward to building on this success with our continued work with DARPA.”

Part and parcel of their new design will be their "HSVTOL" tech, largely developed on its previous tilt rotor work. Bell gussies up the concept as if it's a totally new "game changer", of course, saying HSVTOL offers "jet-like cruise speeds over 400 knots" and "low downwash hover capability", but in essence it's just a more streamlined, angled version of the V-22 Ospreys already in service. But they do look fairly cool, so there's that. Hopefully the CGI renders get better, because the ones Bell has so far are a little cheesy considering the state of 3d art today.

FMI: www.bellflight.com