Army Powering Through with Future Vertical Lift Programs
4/2/2021
By Mandy Mayfield
Bell 360 Invictus
The Army is working to rapidly acquire both a future scout helicopter and a Black Hawk replacement aircraft. Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the service and industry are working together to ensure these projects’ aggressive timelines aren’t derailed.
The Army’s future attack reconnaissance aircraft, or FARA, and future long-range assault aircraft, or FLRAA, initiatives are being spearheaded by the service’s future vertical lift cross-functional team as part of Army Futures Command. FVL — which is envisioned as a new family of rotorcraft — is one of the Army’s top three major modernization priorities as the service prepares for great power competition with China and Russia.
The service is leveraging other transaction authority agreements for both efforts. OTAs are a contracting mechanism intended to cut through bureaucratic red tape and fast-track military prototyping.
https://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/articles/2021/4/2/army-powering-through-with-future-vertical-lift-programs
