The US Department of Defense has assigned a key architect of the project that became the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme to look at launching an all-new, "future vertical lift" (FVL) aircraft to enter service after 2020.
A key goal will be to reduce the danger of aircraft operating in vertical lift mode. Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003 are said to have claimed 215 helicopters and 380 lives.
Here's a picture of a Chinook in service in Afghanistan.
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