Bell’s new long-range assault aircraft moves to next phase

Bell Textron Inc. has announced that the United States Army has approved the Milestone B decision for its Future Long Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA), officially marking the beginning of the programme’s entry into the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase, according to a press release from the company.

This milestone, a key part of the Major Capability Acquisition process, signifies the start of the FLRAA’s journey as a Program of Record (PoR).

Bell’s Senior Vice President and FLRAA Program Director, Ryan Ehinger, described the achievement as a “historic moment for both the U.S. Army and Bell,” noting that the program is now on course to deliver what the company describes as “transformational capability to the warfighter.”

The FLRAA team, he added, is focused on closely collaborating with the Army to move forward with the next phase of development.

The press release outlines that the Milestone B decision comes after extensive work by Bell and its partners to refine the aircraft’s design, reduce risks, and align the system’s capabilities with the U.S. Army’s mission requirements. This work included a Preliminary Design Review (PDR), which was aimed at ensuring the integration and effectiveness of the aircraft’s various systems, including weapon design, sustainment, and system integration.

Colonel Jeffrey Poquette, FLRAA Project Manager, highlighted the collective effort behind reaching this stage, stating in the press release, “This significant milestone is made possible by the years of hard work and sacrifice by Team FLRAA and our teammates throughout the Army and the Department of Defense.” He added that the program is now entering an exciting phase where the focus will be on designing, building, and testing prototypes of the FLRAA.

Since the U.S. Army awarded Bell the FLRAA contract in December 2022, the company has established new facilities and manufacturing processes to support the program. As the project moves into the EMD phase, Bell’s efforts will concentrate on refining the aircraft’s design and progressing with prototyping.

According to the press release, the FLRAA is expected to offer significant advancements over the current fleet, with the new aircraft projected to fly twice as far and twice as fast.

The company attributes this performance to mature tiltrotor technology, an innovative digital engineering approach, and an open architecture, which it claims will make the FLRAA the most reliable, affordable, and high-performing long-range assault aircraft in the world.