Page 18 - World Airnews Magazine April 2020 Edition

MANUFACTURER

BOEING REVEALS

LONG-AWAITED FARA DESIGN

we believe will meet all the needs the army The configuration is reminiscent of

is looking for,” Cherry said. Lockheed’s AH-56 Cheyenne, flown in 1967,
he last of the five competing teams This includes close consideration of both but smaller because the FARA is limited to

Tto unveil its design, Boeing has lifecycle and acquisition costs for the new a rotor diametre of less than 40 ft to enable

revealed it is offering a thrust-compound- aircraft, Cherry added. it to fly between buildings in urban combat.

Boeing looked at the AH-56 for lessons
ed helicopter for the US army’s Future Boeing’s tandem-seat, single-engine de- learned, but the rotor is different, Open-

Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) sign has a hinge less single main rotor with shaw said.

programme. six blades for high solidity, a four-blade tail The rigid-rotor AH-56 experienced con-
The clean-sheet design is being pitched to rotor and a clutched four-blade propeller trol challenges, but it was not a fly-by-wire

win one of two contracts the Army expects on the tail for propulsion. Power comes helicopter, he notes. Boeing has experience
to award at the end of March to build FARA from a single 3,000-shp General Electric of fly-by-wire from the RAH-66 Comanche

prototypes for a competitive fly off at the T901 and there is no wing. developed with Sikorsky and the Sikorsky/

end of fiscal 2023. All five competitors are offering different Boeing SB-1 Defiant high-speed helicopter

FARA is intended to replace Boeing rotorcraft configurations for FARA. AVX is demonstrator now in flight testing.

AH-64E Apaches now used in the armed proposing a coaxial compound helicopter The AH-64 has a four-blade, fully articu-

reconnaissance role- about half the army’s with side-by-wide seating, articulated lated rotor, but Boeing’s experience with

fleet - with the first unit scheduled to be rotors, wing and ducted fans. Bell is bidding hinge less rotors dates back to its YUH-61

equipped in 2028. a tandem-seat helicopter with articulated entrant in the utility-helicopter compe-

Boeing conducted trade studies looking main rotor, canted ducted tail rotor, wing tition that produced the Sikorsky UH-60

at all possible configurations for an armed and supplemental power unit. Black Hawk.

scout before selecting a thrust-compound- Karem Aircraft’s winged compound Flown in 1973, the YUH-61 had a com-

ed helicopter, said Shane Openshaw, FARA helicopter has side-by-side seating, an posite four-blade hinge less rotor based on

programme manager. actively controlled rigid rotor, tilting wing Boeing’s experience working with MBB on
“We did not go into this with our minds and swivelling tail-rotor/propulsor. Sikorsky the BO105 light helicopter.
made up,” he said, describing a “focused is proposing a coaxial rigid-rotor compound Despite the addition of a propeller, which

effort” over the past 18 months to define helicopter with tail propulsor and side-by- is driven via clutch mounted aft of the tail

an all-new aircraft that “meets or exceeds side seating. rotor gearbox, “we do not see this as an
all the army’s requirements,” including a Boeing has not partnered with any other overly complex design,” Cherry said. “The

maximum speed of at least 180 kt. vendors for its FARA offering and is instead army has set the industry tough problems
Boeing employed model-based systems taking a “One Boeing” approach, Cherry said. with its mandatory requirements and

engineering for its FARA offering similar “Our other suppliers and other partners desirements. Every configuration has its

to the method the company used to win are still something that we will build later, pluses and its drawbacks.”
the air force’s T-X programme and navy’s but at this point consider it a Boeing-led Boeing Phantom Works is leading the
carrier-based aerial refuelling system effort development,” he said. FARA bid, working with the company’s

- the company’s T-7 and MQ-25, respec- Boeing’s high-solidity hinge less rotor AvioniX and Aurora Flight Sciences divisions
tively - said Mark Cherry, vice president provides agility and manoeuvrability on the prototype.

and general manager of Phantom Works at without the high flapping of a fully articu- “We are not inventing new technologies,”

Boeing. lated rotor, Openshaw said. The tail rotor Openshaw said. “We are integrating and

“We’re doing that combination of listen- provides manoeuvrability at low speed and improving on mature technologies to meet

ing to our customer, understanding our the propeller provides manoeuvrability at the challenges of delivering with the risk,

own capability, and putting that together high speed. Weapons are carried internally schedule and cost [the Army wants]. This is

into a purpose-built clean sheet design that to minimise drag. the right way to go.” Q
World Airnews | April 2020
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