Wed, Oct 27, 2010
EADS North America Developing Initial Technical Demonstration
Aircraft
The Armed Aerial Scout 72X (AAS-72X) industry team is preparing
for the first flight of one of three company-funded Technical
Demonstration Aircraft (TDA), EADS North America announced Monday
at the Association of the U.S. Army annual convention.
Armed Aerial Scout 72X
The EADS North America-led industry team, comprised of Lockheed
Martin, Eurocopter and American Eurocopter, is developing three
AAS- 72X aircraft to demonstrate the total capability of the
aircraft with a fully integrated Mission Equipment Package (MEP).
The initial flight of the first demonstrator aircraft is currently
planned for sometime in December.
“First flight is a key milestone that moves us down the
technical path to demonstrating the capabilities of the aircraft
and reflects our commitment to our Army customer and this important
warfighting requirement,” said Sean O’Keefe, CEO of
EADS North America. In July 2009, the AAS-72X industry team
conducted a series of successful high/hot test flights that
achieved all test objectives including flight endurance with a
2,300-pound simulated MEP. Since that time other advancements on
the program include the development of the MEP Systems Integration
Laboratory at Lockheed Martin’s Orlando, FL. facility.
”Lockheed Martin is making significant progress in the
maturation of the AAS- 72X state-of-the-art MEP,” said Bob
Gunning, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control vice president
of Fire Control programs. “We are leveraging our expertise
from other combat-proven rotary- and fixed-wing programs to develop
the lowest risk MEP. The first flight in December marks a
significant milestone in our path towards flying a production
prototype.”
As a highly capable helicopter for the Armed Aerial Scout
mission, the AAS-72X combines twin-engine safety, high and hot
operating performance and a large cabin for true multi-role
capability. The AAS-72X is derived from the same family of aircraft
as the UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter, offering a low-risk
evolution of the U.S. Army’s newest rotary-wing aircraft,
which is widely considered one of the most successful acquisition
programs in the service’s history.
Production of the AAS-72X would take place at the Columbus, MS
helicopter center of excellence operated by EADS North
America’s subsidiary American Eurocopter, where the UH-72A
currently is assembled for the U.S. Army.
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