NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The US Army's annual helo-palooza -- the Army Aviation Association of America's (Quad-A's) annual convention -- opened this morning with aviation branch's top officer making a bold commitment to field an all-new, high-speed rotorcraft in 2030.
Maj Gen Anthony Crutchfield, head of army aviation headquarters at Fort Rucker, set an "aimpoint" to field an optionally manned rotorcraft with speed greater than 200kt within 19 years.
"We're not going to waiver. Our knees will not buckle. And we're going to field this aircraft," Crutchfield said. "Because I don't want my grandchildren flying the [AH-64] Longbow Block 80. It's a great aircraft but we need technology to take us further into that future."
Crutchfield's briefing included a slide with these requirements for a new "joint multi-role" helicopter:
Performance: 6K/95
Radius: 424km unrefueled
Endurance: 2hr station time
Payload: Nine-man squad, sensor/weapons package
Speed: >200kt
Optionally manned
"I don't think we can do all those things just by incrementally improving our current aircraft. It's going to have to be something new," Crutchfield says. "We're not going to get everything we want. But we have to to get everything we need, and I believe we need this."
If the 200kt minimum speed requirement sticks, Crutchfield is right. The army will need more than an all-new helicopter. It will need a new kind of rotorcraft, such as a coaxial-compound combination like X-2 or a tiltrotor like the V-22. Convention helicopters are limited to a maximum of 170-180kt due to retreating blade stall.
Maj Gen Anthony Crutchfield, head of army aviation headquarters at Fort Rucker, set an "aimpoint" to field an optionally manned rotorcraft with speed greater than 200kt within 19 years.
"We're not going to waiver. Our knees will not buckle. And we're going to field this aircraft," Crutchfield said. "Because I don't want my grandchildren flying the [AH-64] Longbow Block 80. It's a great aircraft but we need technology to take us further into that future."
Crutchfield's briefing included a slide with these requirements for a new "joint multi-role" helicopter:
Performance: 6K/95
Radius: 424km unrefueled
Endurance: 2hr station time
Payload: Nine-man squad, sensor/weapons package
Speed: >200kt
Optionally manned
"I don't think we can do all those things just by incrementally improving our current aircraft. It's going to have to be something new," Crutchfield says. "We're not going to get everything we want. But we have to to get everything we need, and I believe we need this."
If the 200kt minimum speed requirement sticks, Crutchfield is right. The army will need more than an all-new helicopter. It will need a new kind of rotorcraft, such as a coaxial-compound combination like X-2 or a tiltrotor like the V-22. Convention helicopters are limited to a maximum of 170-180kt due to retreating blade stall.
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