Sikorsky's Raider X prototype at the company's West Palm Beach, Florida factory, in September 2023. (Lockheed Martin Corporation – Sikorsky)
Lockheed Martin subsidiary Sikorsky's Raider X, the company's submission for the US Army's Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) programme, is 98% complete, Sikorsky president Paul Lemmo said during a 3 October media roundtable. The compound helicopter lacks only its engine, the General Electric (GE) T901 Improved Engine Turbine Program (ITEP), which Lemmo expects to arrive later in October.
“We're in frequent communication with both GE and obviously the army FARA programme office; those dialogues are going on continuously and all signs are pointing from the army and GE that we should receive the engine here in October,” Lemmo said.
“As soon as we receive [the engine] we will be able to immediately start the installation process in advance of ground testing and eventually flight-testing,” he said.
In anticipation of the first Raider X flight, Sikorsky has been expanding the flight envelope of the S-97 technology demonstrator, Lemmo said. The demonstrator has now flown more than 136 hours, with the latest tests focused on expanding the flight envelope at high speeds. “These critical test flights do enable us to design a lighter-weight [Raider X] aircraft, giving us more confidence in our design tools, ultimately reducing [the] risk for the army,” Lemmo said.
Sikorsky built the fuselage of a second Raider X to serve as a fatigue test subject. Although the testing has been completed and the fuselage placed in storage, it could be used to build a second Raider X if the company deems it necessary.
Sikorsky intends to fly Raider X before the fourth quarter of 2024, Lemmo said.
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