STATEMENT OF
ROGER KRONE
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT
BOEING ARMY SYSTEMS
BEFORE THE HOUSE ARMED SERVICE
COMMITTEE
ON THE
U.S. ROTORCRAFT INDUSTRIAL BASE
MARCH 12, 2003
Thank you, Mr.
Chairman and members of the committee. My
name is Roger Krone, and I am Senior Vice
President of Army Systems, a unit of Boeing
Integrated Defense Systems. I appreciate
this opportunity to share with you Boeing
Army Systems' perspective on the current
state of the rotorcraft industry and the
prospects for the future.
I would like to talk about what we are doing at Boeing with regards to research, development, design and production in the area of rotorcraft, as well as emerging requirements and the investments that need to be made to take rotorcraft to the next level and beyond.
Boeing Army Systems is a growing $2 billion business which encompasses systems integration work on several major U.S. Army transformational programs, including Future Combat Systems and Joint Tactical Radio Systems. Our core business also includes our rotorcraft activities centered at our facilities in Philadelphia, PA and Mesa, AZ where we employ nearly 10,000 skilled and talented people. In addition, we support a widespread supplier base in more than 43 states. Both these sites enjoy a rich heritage of rotorcraft production that spans more than half a century. They draw on a legacy of innovation that includes rotorcraft pioneers such as Howard Hughes and Frank Piasecki.
As you know, Mr. Chairman, the business that Frank Piasecki started in a suburban Philadelphia garage has grown into a rotorcraft production facility that occupies 3.26 million square feet and employs approximately 4,400 people. This facility includes a world-renowned, 20 X 20 ft. low-speed wind tunnel, two fully instrumented whirl towers, a state-of-the-art simulation facility, and world-class composite manufacturing capabilities.
At this site, we manufacture and support the CH-47 Chinook, which entered service in the early 1960s. More than 800 of these twin-engine, tandem-rotor heavy lift helicopters are in service with the U.S. military and international customers. The Chinook possesses an unparalleled capability to support the full spectrum of military, humanitarian relief, and nation-building missions around the globe.
We are currently remanufacturing U.S. Army Chinooks to the new F-model configuration and MH-47G Special Operations Chinooks under the second modernization program in the history of these helicopters. This program will increase the capabilities and extend the service life of the CH-47 well beyond 2020. The first Chinook aircraft to be updated have been received from the fleet. They have been inducted into the modernization program and are progressing on schedule.
We are also modernizing Chinooks for international customers. There are approximately 300 Chinooks in service in more than a dozen countries around the world. In addition, we have sold, and will continue to offer, new-build Chinooks to international customers.
Our Philadelphia facility also is the location for our activities on the RAH-66 Comanche armed reconnaissance helicopter. We're developing the Comanche in cooperation with our teammate Sikorsky Aircraft.
The
twin-turbine, two-seat Comanche is the
centerpiece of the U.S. Army's aviation
modernization plan and reflects the Army's
overall transition to an Objective Force.
This force will utilize advanced weapon
systems and smaller units that are
responsive, deployable, agile, versatile,
lethal, survivable, and sustainable. The
Comanche, with its advanced sensor and
integrated communications suite, represents
an essential reconnaissance node in the
Army's network centric warfare architecture.
Philadelphia also is the center for Boeing's
work on the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft
which is currently in low-rate production.
Boeing is partnered with teammate Bell
Helicopter Textron on this program.
The
V-22 Osprey is the first aircraft designed
from the ground up to meet Marine Corps,
Navy, and Air Force Special Operations
requirements. With the speed and range of a
turboprop and the vertical lift of a
helicopter, the V-22 offers unmatched
flexibility for the 21st Century
warfighter. The aircraft can transport
Marine Corps assault troops and cargo using
its medium lift and vertical takeoff and
landing capabilities. It meets U.S. Navy
requirements for combat search and rescue,
fleet logistics support, and special warfare
support.
The twin-engine tiltrotor can carry 24
combat troops, or up to 20,000 pounds of
internal or external cargo, at twice the
speed of a helicopter. It includes
cross-coupled transmissions so either engine
can power the rotors if one engine fails.
The rotors can fold and the wings rotate so
the aircraft can be stored aboard an
aircraft carrier.
At our Mesa facility, where we have more than 4,100 employees, the focus is on manufacturing and modernizing AH-64 attack helicopters for the U.S. Army and international customers, as well as developing new technologies for the defense industry. Mesa is the center of lean manufacturing within Boeing Army Systems. The site also is the center of excellence for flight test. In addition, it has numerous component and vehicle test facilities and hosts a world-class man-in-the-loop developmental simulation facility.
Boeing has delivered more than 1,000 Apaches to customers around the world since the first aircraft rolled off the assembly line in 1983. A total of 11 nations worldwide have selected the Apache for their defense forces. The AH-64D Apache Longbow is the latest version of the combat-proven Apache. The Apache Longbow's fire control radar and advanced avionics suite give combat pilots the ability to rapidly detect, classify, prioritize, and engage stationary or moving enemy targets at standoff ranges.
Production of the "D" model began in 1996 under a multi-year contract with the U.S. Army based on a block modernization concept. The contract involved remanufacturing 232 AH-64A Apaches to the Apache Longbow configuration, and the first aircraft were delivered to the U.S. Army in 1997. To date, the Army has fielded seven fully equipped, combat-certified Apache Longbow battalions.
Under a second, five-year contract with the U.S. Army, Boeing will convert an additional 269 AH-64As into Apache Longbows through 2006. Under the two contracts, Boeing will remanufacture a total of 501 Apache aircraft out of a total of nearly 750.
Last month, the first Multi-Year II, Block II configuration Apache Longbow was delivered to the U.S. Army. Block II incorporates the latest advances in databus technology, communications, a digital map, and other upgrades to facilitate improved situational awareness. The integration of new technologies continues to enhance the AH-64D Apache Longbow's position as a critical asset for the U.S. Army. Recent decisions have placed the Apache Longbow in the Army's Objective Force for future combat operations.
Future upgrades - many of which are being proposed in a new Block III configuration - are essential for U.S. Army Apaches to retain their leading edge and provide the best possible protection for the men and women in our armed services. The proposed Block III Apache will be a critical element in the Army's network centric architecture.
Block III remains unfunded, and that poses a significant issue for the industrial base for Apache, as well as other technologies being developed in Mesa. Without funding for Block III enhancements the rotorcraft industrial base will be adversely affected in Mesa.
We are also continuing to investigate advanced systems, both manned and unmanned, and new technologies to support the U.S. military's transformation. Boeing is currently conducting concept development studies for an Unmanned Combat Armed Rotorcraft, or UCAR. This U.S. Army/Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency program seeks to develop an autonomous, survivable and lethal unmanned rotorcraft for the Army's Objective Force. Boeing is a Phase One contractor and is currently in competition for a Phase Two award.
We're also working on a revolutionary design concept called the Canard Rotor/Wing (CRW) that can perform like a helicopter for vertical takeoffs and landings and as a fixed-wing aircraft for high-speed cruise. For rotary wing flight, the CRW's reaction-drive rotor/wing eliminates the need for a mechanical drive train and anti-torque system. That equates to reduced weight, cost and complexity. An unmanned version of the CRW could perform a variety of missions, including communications and data relay, reconnaissance, and logistics resupply. Manned versions could also perform these same functions, as well as civilian security operations.
These and other manned and unmanned rotorcraft technology developments offer further opportunities to meet Department of Defense and Homeland Security requirements and could play a significant role in maintaining the rotorcraft industrial base.
But the critical question is whether we can deliver on the promise of these and other new advanced rotorcraft concepts. Looking at the track record so far, the odds would seem to be less than favorable. For several years, the focus has been largely on extending the life of existing platforms rather than the development and production of new-build aircraft. It's been on incremental, evolutionary improvements rather than innovative, revolutionary new designs.
The last new helicopter development contract from the Department of Defense was awarded in 1991 for the Comanche. That represents a gap of 12 years. In fact, our most recent hope, the Joint Transport Rotorcraft program, has disappeared from long-range budget plans altogether.
While we obviously are concerned about the health of current rotorcraft programs, we're even more concerned about the future and where the industry as a whole will be in ten, twenty or thirty years' time. Will the technology be there when we need it? Will the infrastructure be there? Will we have the people in place with the right skills to deliver the new products we'll need in the future? And will there be a robust supplier base to support the industry?
Some of us here can recall the futuristic stories of the 1950s that forecasted the vast potential for rotorcraft. Many of those stories predicted we'd all have a helicopter in our garage and we'd be using them to fly between neighboring cities. Well, last night I looked in my garage, and there wasn't a helicopter there. Every family doesn't have one. More than 50 years later the vision has yet to materialize. There is no mass-market rotorcraft consumer base.
The much-anticipated commercialization of rotorcraft never occurred as some of the visionary pioneers in the industry expected, and without the investment that a large commercial market can bring to bear, the industry has largely been dependent on government customers to help defray the costs of advancing technology and developing new products. Compared to the U.S., European governments have performed this role better, resulting in a sustained competitive advantage for European commercial helicopters in the marketplace. Indeed, after losing money for ten years, Boeing exited the commercial rotorcraft market in 1998, for just these reasons.
As we've seen, the military rotorcraft market has largely evolved from buying new aircraft to upgrades and remanufactures of fielded platforms. The time between new products is getting longer and longer. Industry has often been forced to rely on international sales to bridge gaps between U.S. military programs in order to keep production lines warm and retain our skilled work forces.
But this is becoming more and more difficult as a result of increasingly aggressive challenges from our European competitors in markets around the world. These competitors, bolstered by increasing government support for research and development of military as well as civil rotorcraft, are offering new products, incorporating technological advances in areas such as rotor blades and transmissions that match or sometimes exceed U.S. capabilities.
Five years ago, an $800 million program was created to provide new rotor technologies, such as on-blade control, swashplateless design and higher harmonic control. This Variable Geometry Advanced Rotor Design (VGARD) program would have set the foundation for the next generation of jet-smooth helicopter flight. VGARD was subsequently cancelled as a direct result of budget cuts. Along with this, came a diminished industrial base of key technology providers and development facilities, such as wind tunnels and simulators. Unfortunately, these losses will be hard to recover, if they ever can be recovered at all.
Rotorcraft technology is a national asset. We've seen how helicopters have contributed to the defense of the nation and enriched our lives. Anyone who watches CNN knows how effective they have been in conflicts around the globe and in humanitarian missions.
Apaches, Chinooks, and other rotorcraft have played central roles supporting national security interests, serving with distinction in a number of recent military and peacekeeping operations, including Afghanistan. Chinooks have proved their worth over an over again in humanitarian and disaster relief missions. In recent years, they have helped people recover from flood damage along the Mississippi River, transported food and essential supplies into Dade County in the wake of Hurricane Andrew, and assisted in the rescue of Pennsylvania coal miners trapped by underground flooding.
Yet the U.S. Army is relying on a heavy lift platform designed more than 40 years ago to transport troops and equipment on the battlefield. The Chinook was developed in the late 1950s, less than a decade after the B-52 bomber entered service. Since then, two follow-on bombers have been fielded, but no new heavy-lift helicopter. More has been spent on the F-22 fighter program alone than on rotorcraft development over the last 30 years.
The question is: "How long can we continue down this path?"
There are many emerging requirements for rotorcraft. The impact of reduced federal funding for rotorcraft science and technology efforts has delayed the accomplishment of national priorities in several vital areas:
- Advanced rotorcraft systems to support mobility requirements for the Army's Objective Force. There has been a long-standing joint, multi-service requirement for a VTOL heavy cargo lifter. All the military services agree on the need, but a lack of funding has delayed the development of key enabling technologies.
- Emerging Homeland Security applications. There is an urgent need for an all-weather, rapid response capability in low-visibility and obstacle-rich urban environments that cannot be met adequately with current-technology rotorcraft.
- Transportation. An important element of long-term congestion relief is to transport short-haul passengers to and from airports in runway-independent aircraft, freeing the runways (and the air traffic control system) for use by long-haul aircraft.
Will we be able to meet these requirements? I believe we have little choice.
Increased collaboration on research and development offers a step in the right direction. But without the right investments now, rotorcraft will not be able to fulfill the roles envisioned for them in the future. Industry and government must work together to ensure continued development of the best of rotorcraft technology to meet the ever-growing needs of our nation, as well as sustain the competitiveness of the U.S. rotorcraft industry in the international marketplace.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
DISCLOSURE FORM FOR WITNESSES
CONCERNING FEDERAL CONTRACT AND GRANT
INFORMATION
Witness Name: Roger Krone
Capacity in which appearing: Representative of the Boeing Company, Integrated Defense Systems, Army Systems business Unit. The following is a summary of major Federal Contracts awarded to Boeing for rotorcraft and related products and services in the past three years.
Federal Contract Information:
Number of contracts (including subcontracts)
with the Federal Government:
Current Fiscal Year (2003): 79
FY 2002 >120
FY 2001 >150
Federal Agencies with which Federal Contracts held:
Dept. of Defense, NASA, FAA
List of subjects of Federal Contracts:
Rotorcraft and rotorcraft related research, products and services.
Aggregate dollar value of contracts held:
(Rotorcraft and related products and services backlog only):
FY 2003 $5.9B
FY 2002 $7.4B
FY 2001 $7.3B
ROGER A. KRONE
Senior Vice President
Army Systems
Roger A. Krone
is senior vice president of Army Systems, a
unit of Boeing Integrated Defense Systems,
and a member of the Boeing Executive
Council.
Boeing Integrated Defense Systems (IDS), based in St. Louis, is a $23-billion business with capabilities in defense, intelligence, communications and space. Boeing Integrated Defense Systems is a recognized leader in providing end-to-end services for large-scale systems that combine sophisticated communications networks with air, land, sea and space-based platforms for global military, government and commercial customers.
Krone leads a growing $2 billion business that includes the major transformational Army programs Boeing won in 2002 - Future Combat Systems and Joint Tactical Radio Systems.
In addition to systems integration work for the Army, this business unit also delivers many Army platforms, including the RAH-66 Comanche combat helicopter, the AH-64D Apache Longbow and the CH-47 Chinook tandem rotor helicopter. Headquartered in Delaware County, PA, Army Systems employs more than 8,000 men and women.
Until September 2002, Krone was vice president of strategic programs at Boeing's corporate headquarters in Chicago. He was previously vice president and general manager for U.S. Army Programs and Military Rotorcraft for The Boeing Company where he had overall responsibility for all U.S. Army programs and supporting functional activities in Philadelphia and Mesa, Ariz.
Programs at these facilities include the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey tiltrotor, the Boeing Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche combat helicopter, the CH-47 Chinook and CH-46 tandem rotor helicopters, the AH-64D Apache Attack helicopter and the Boeing Strategic Manufacturing Center (SMC) for wiring.
Prior to this assignment he was the vice president and general manager of Business Management and chief financial officer for Boeing Military Aircraft and Missile Systems. He was responsible for all financial activities of the unit and led the team that manages business resources.
Roger Krone also served as vice president and treasurer of McDonnell Douglas, responsible for financial planning, treasury operations, investor relations, insurance and risk management and pension fund management.
He joined McDonnell Douglas in 1992 as director of Financial Planning and later became division director of Information Systems at McDonnell Douglas Aerospace. He was with General Dynamics from 1977 through 1991, where he held positions in program management, engineering and finance.
Krone is a graduate of Georgia Institute of Technology, with a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering. He received a master's degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington and a master's degree in business administration from the Harvard Graduate School of Business. Krone is also a certified public accountant.
He is a member of the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) and on the board of directors for the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, The Franklin Institute Science Center, the Army Aviation Association of America (AAAA), the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) Board of Governors and past Chairman of the American Helicopter Society (AHS). He is also a commercial pilot.
Krone was born July 25, 1956, in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Boeing Rotorcraft Programs
AH-64 Apache
Defense forces worldwide fly two variants of the AH-64 Apache multi-mission combat helicopters: the AH-64A Apache and the next-generation version, the AH-64D. Equipped with radar, the aircraft is known as the AH-64D Apache Longbow. Without radar, it is the AH-64D Apache. (In the United Kingdom, where all next-generation Apaches will have radars, Apaches in production by AgustaWestland, are designated WAH-64 Apaches.)
AH-64D Apache Longbow
The AH-64D Apache Longbow is the newest version of the combat-proven AH-64A Apache and a candidate to fulfill the attack helicopter and reconnaissance requirements of numerous armed forces worldwide. Apache Longbow is in production at The Boeing Company in Mesa, Ariz.
Boeing is producing the world's most advanced multi-role combat helicopter for the U.S. Army at a rate of six helicopters a month. The rate does not include ongoing production of new aircraft for the United Kingdom (in support of prime contractor AgustaWestland), plus pending new or remanufactured aircraft for Singapore, Egypt, Japan, Israel, Kuwait and other future international customers.
More than 1,100 AH-64A and AH-64D Apaches have been delivered to customers around the world since the Apache went into production in the early 1980s. Boeing has announced a commitment to deliver 1,000 more Apaches over the next decade.
The program received a major boost in October 2000 when the U.S. Army raised its total Apache Longbow orders to 501 with a second five-year, multi-year contract with Boeing for 269 additional remanufactured Apache Longbows.
The final aircraft for the first multi-year Apache Longbow contract and the first Apache Longbow for the follow-on program were rolled out for the Army in April 2002.
U.S. Army Apache Longbow production at The Boeing Company in Mesa, Ariz., will continue through at least 2006.
These multi-year contracts are saving millions of dollars by giving the U.S. Army more aircraft than would be available under single-year funding over the same period.
The venerable Apache has accumulated more than 1.5 million flight hours since the first prototype aircraft flew for the first time in 1975.
Fielding Efforts Continue
Seven U.S. Army Apache Longbow battalions have been certified as combat ready. The sixth unit was certified in June 2002.
Three of the seven units have deployed Apache Longbows overseas. In early 2002, Apache Longbows were sent to the Middle East to participate in the Operation Desert Spring training exercise. In late 2001, the U.S. Army deployed an Apache Longbow battalion to the Republic of Korea. In July 2002, the U.S. Army deployed an Apache Longbow battalion to Germany.
The first fully equipped U.S. Army unit with AH-64D Apache Longbows was fielded in November 1998. The Army fielded its first international Apache Longbow unit in October 2001. Additional combat units are in training.
The first Apache Longbow unit also became the first to field the Interactive Electronic Technical Manual, a revolutionary Class IV computerized data storage system that enables multiple fault troubleshooting, configuration management, and eliminates the need for paper technical manuals.
The first six production Apache Longbows were flown to Fort Hood, Texas, in April 1998, aboard a C-5 transport aircraft as a demonstration of the U.S. Army's ability to rapidly deploy large numbers of Apache Longbows. The U.S. Army unveiled the Apache Longbows to the public in June 1998, during a formal arrival ceremony at Fort Hood.
U.S. Army National Guard and Reserve
Seven Army National Guard and two Army Reserve units in North and South Carolina, Florida, Texas, Arizona, Utah and Idaho that fly AH-64A Apache helicopters are considering converting their AH-64A Apaches to the more advanced AH-64D Longbow configuration.
According to the National Guard's 2002 Posture Statement, "The Army National Guard plays an increasingly significant role in the National Military Strategy, now missioned even more closely with Active Component forces. The Guard must modernize at an accelerated rate."
The National Guard and Army Reserve routinely deploy their Apache resources in support of regional and international operations. The Pennsylvania National Guard is scheduled to receive Apaches in 2003.
Roadmap for the Future
Boeing is working closely with the U.S. Army and its international customers to ensure the continued superiority of the Apache Longbow.
Planned enhancements include a Modernized Target Acquisition Designation Sight/ Pilot Night Vision Sensor, further enhancements to the Improved Data Modem, advanced non-line-of-sight communications, and a full digital map.
U.S. Army Apache Longbow aircraft demonstrated the aircraft's advanced capabilities in April 2001 during the Army's Division Capstone Exercise at Fort Irwin, California. During the field test, 16 Apache Longbows participated in the division-level exercise that evaluated the 21st century capabilities of the Army's warfighting systems.
AH-64D Apache Longbows have greater weapons accuracy at longer ranges and have the ability to fight more effectively at night and in nearly any weather.
The Apache Longbow's advanced communications and combat capabilities give battlefield commanders the ability to effectively manage 21st century conflict arenas in real-time.
On reconnaissance missions, Apache Longbow detects objects of interest without being detected and digitally sends images and precise target locations to other air and ground stations.
The Apache Longbow's fully integrated suite of multi-spectral sensors and digital
communications provides real time situational awareness. Communication lets members know exactly where they are, where their friends are and where the aggressor is.
Apache Longbow is being continually improved to ensure relevance for operators around the world. The Apache is designed to effectively assimilate technological enhancements. Similar advancements will take place throughout the life of the aircraft.
The U.S. Army has established programs designed to keep its Apaches at the leading edge of technology for the next 30-plus years.
Continuously expanding digital communications capabilities increase the number of on- and off-board sensors/systems that enable the Apache to exchange real-time information.
Apache's digital connectivity, powerful new sensors, individual weapon systems, advanced training devices and maintenance support systems are all designed in anticipation of growth and changing requirements.
Such improvements ensure full mission capability during active duty and reduced operating costs in peacetime.
CH-47D/F Chinook
The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is a twin-turbine, tandem-rotor, heavy-lift transport helicopter. Boeing manufactures, modernizes and supports the Chinook in Philadelphia for the United States Army, Army Reserve, National Guard and several international customers.
The Chinook's principal U.S. Army mission is movement of troops, artillery, ammunition, fuel, water, barrier materials, supplies and equipment on the battlefield. Secondary missions include medical evacuation, aircraft recovery, fire fighting, parachute drops, heavy construction, civil development, disaster relief and search and rescue. In the U.S. Army National Guard and among international customers, Chinooks often devote most of their flight hours on these secondary missions.
The U.S. Army has operated a variety of CH-47 Chinook models since first taking delivery in 1962. Shortly after entering Army service, Chinooks were deployed to the Republic of Vietnam, where CH-47A, B and C models served with distinction for a decade until the war's end in 1975. Of the nearly 750 Chinooks in the U.S. and Republic of Vietnam fleets, about 200 were lost in combat or wartime operational accidents.
After the war, Boeing and the Army began planning a major fleet upgrade that led to development of the CH-47D. Almost 500 early model Chinooks went through an extensive modernization process in Philadelphia that produced an essential new CH-47 fleet. Boeing completed first D-model deliveries in 1982 and concluded the program in 1994. Only two U.S. Army CH-47Ds were built to replace aircraft losses in the Persian Gulf War. All other D models are modernized aircraft.
The CH-47D remains the U.S. Army standard and features composite rotor blades, an improved electrical system, modularized hydraulics, triple cargo hooks, avionics and communication improvements and more powerful engines that can handle a 25,000-pound useful load, nearly twice the Chinook's original lift capacity. The CH-47D Chinook already has been the U.S. Army's prime mover for 20 years, and was a central element in U.S. Army operations in the Persian Gulf War, where more than 160 Chinooks carried U.S. and Allied troops in history's largest aerial assault to outflank Iraqi forces and cut off their retreat from Kuwait.
In the mid-1990s, Boeing and the Army agreed that the Chinook fleet should undergo a second modernization program. This program will extend CH-47 service well beyond 2030, virtually guaranteeing that Chinooks will handle U.S. Army missions for at least 75 years. Boeing is currently in low-rate production of the CH-47F, scheduled for first delivery in 2004. Boeing is under contract to modernize at least 300 Chinooks to the new F-model standard, which features reduced vibration effects, an integrated cockpit control system and more powerful engines with digital fuel controls. These improvements will make the Chinook fully compatible with 21st century operational and war-fighting requirements and improve the aircraft's efficiency and effectiveness.
U.S. Army Special Operations Forces also operate more than 30 Special Operations Chinooks, designated as MH-47Ds and MH-47Es. The MH-47Es are among the most advanced rotorcraft in operation today. They incorporate fully integrated digital cockpits; forward-looking infrared, terrain-following/terrain-avoidance radar; long-range fuel tanks; and aerial refueling capability. Special Operations Chinooks perform low-level, high-speed flight for infiltration and exfiltration of Special Operations teams at night and in adverse weather. Boeing and the U.S. Special Operations Command are currently discussing a Special Operations Chinook upgrade program that will provide a fleet-wide common avionics suite and several other system improvements.
CH-47SD Chinook Helicopter
The CH-47SD International Chinook is the most advanced model of the world's most efficient heavy-lift helicopter. About 800 Chinooks are currently in service in the United States and more than 15 other nations. Among international customers, Chinooks often devote most of their flight hours to nation building and humanitarian missions.
The CH-47SD, or Super D, is the most recent and capable of a variety of Chinook models designated for international service. Standard features include a fully integrated digital cockpit management system with full-color displays; powerful and economical turbine engines with digital fuel controls that can handle loads up to 28,000 pounds; long-range fuel tanks; and a reduced-vibration airframe. A number of options are available to meet other customer operational requirements.
Because the Chinook utilizes tandem-rotor configuration that translates full power into lift, the rotorcraft can carry loads significantly greater than its own empty weight. Continuous product improvements have increased the aircraft's operational capabilities across a wide spectrum of military and civil missions. The Chinook's high speed and large payload make it as effective as three utility helicopters and give the CH-47 the lowest cost-per-ton-mile of any transport helicopter available today.
RAH-66 Comanche
The Boeing Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche armed reconnaissance helicopter is the centerpiece of the U.S. Army's aviation modernization plan. This reflects the Army's overall transition to an Objective Force that will utilize advanced weapon systems and smaller forces that are responsive, deployable, agile, versatile, lethal, survivable and sustainable.
The Comanche is a twin-turbine, two-seat (tandem) armed reconnaissance helicopter with projected missions of armed reconnaissance, light attack and air combat. First deliveries will occur in 2009-2010.
The Comanche program validated a number of aircraft systems and components and built and flew two flight-test prototype aircraft in its Demonstration/Validation/Prototype phase from contract award in 1991 through 2000. The program is currently in its $6.4 billion Engineering and Manufacturing Development phase. During EMD, the program will continue flight tests and validation of the Comanche's fully integrated navigation, communication and passive-sensor targeting system, known as the Mission Equipment Package. In addition, the program will build and deliver nine new Comanches for additional flight tests and U.S. Army operational test, evaluation and training. The Comanche program will reach full production in around 2015 and manufacture at least 650 RAH-66s for U.S. Army service.
The Comanche is the world's most advanced rotorcraft, featuring an all-composite, low-observable airframe that evades detection by radar, infrared and acoustic sensors. Its dynamic system includes a five-bladed bearingless main rotor, split-torque main transmission and an enclosed tail rotor system. Flight controls are fly-by-wire and triply redundant. All aircraft systems are integrated in the Mission Equipment Package that contains a digital avionics suite with advanced programmable communications; an integrated helmet-mounted heads-up display; a night-vision pilotage system and an electro-optical target acquisition and detection system that utilizes advanced, passive, long-range, high-resolution sensors to generate real-time broad-band information to battlefield commanders about enemy dispositions; self-healing digital mission electronics; and triply redundant on-board system diagnostics. The aircraft can utilize high-speed and aerobatic maneuverability to avoid detection and engagement, and carries both missile armament in retractable bays and a retractable Gatling gun slaved to the helmet display. The Comanche is designed for easy field maintenance and repair and eliminates intermediate maintenance requirements.
The Boeing Company in Philadelphia is the Comanche's Mission Equipment Package integrator. Sikorsky Aircraft, of Stratford, Conn., is the program's airframe integrator. The Boeing Sikorsky Team includes several of the nation's leading aerospace companies, including BAE Systems; General Dynamics; Hamilton Sundstrand; Harris, Kaiser Electronics; LHTEC; Longbow, Ltd.; Lockheed Martin; Moog; TRW; and Williams International.
V-22 Osprey
The V-22 Osprey is the first aircraft designed from the ground up to meet the needs of all U.S. armed services. The aircraft can transport Marine Corps assault troops and cargo using its medium lift and vertical takeoff and landing capabilities. It meets U.S. Navy requirements for combat search and rescue, fleet logistics support, and special warfare support.
The V-22 is a tiltrotor aircraft, taking off and landing like a helicopter, but once airborne, its engine nacelles can be rotated to convert the aircraft to a turboprop airplane capable of high-speed, high-altitude flight.
It can carry 24 combat troops, or up to 20,000 pounds of internal or external cargo, at twice the speed of a helicopter. It includes cross-coupled transmissions so either engine can power the rotors if one engine fails.
The rotors can fold and the wing rotates so the aircraft can be stored aboard an aircraft carrier.
Boeing is responsible for the fuselage and all subsystems, digital avionics, and fly-by-wire flight-control systems. Boeing partner Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc., is responsible for the wing, transmissions, empennage, rotor systems, and engine installation.
UCAR Unmanned Combat Armed Rotorcraft
In May 2002, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and U.S. Army selected Boeing as one of four teams for the initial 12-month concept development and system trades phase of the Unmanned Combat Armed Rotorcraft, or UCAR, program.
During Phase I, Boeing will conduct mission effectiveness and affordability trades to develop and optimize an objective system design. After the concept development studies are complete, DARPA will choose two contractors for a nine-month preliminary design phase, followed by a system development phase that will yield two prototype vehicles. In the final phase, ending in 2009, the Army will take ownership of the winning platform and begin its system design and development, leading to fielding the system sometime around 2012.
UCAR will be an all-weather, highly autonomous and survivable unmanned rotorcraft fully integrated into the Army's objective force combat maneuver force structure. The system, which enables ground maneuver force superiority, will be capable of collaborating with multiple UCARs and other manned and unmanned systems. Unlike other unmanned aerial vehicles, however, the UCAR will not have a dedicated ground station. Instead, the system will integrate into existing command and control platforms, such as the Future Combat Systems command and control vehicle and combat aviation. Capable of autonomous mission planning while in flight, the UCAR will request guidance from a human operator only for tasking and final weapons authorization.
Canard Rotor/Wing (CRW)
Currently under development at Boeing Phantom Works is the next generation high-speed, vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft known as the Canard Rotor/Wing or CRW. Under an agreement with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Boeing will build and flight test two unmanned technology demonstrators to assess and validate this advanced rotorcraft concept.
Designated X-50A, and also known as "Dragonfly", the CRW combines the low-disk loading hover efficiency and low-speed flight characteristics of a helicopter with the high subsonic cruise speed of a fixed-wing aircraft. For both rotary-wing and fixed-wing flight modes, the CRW is powered by a conventional turbofan engine utilizing diverter valves that direct the thrust to the rotor blade tips or aft to the jet nozzle, with dual bleed thrust used during transition. By using a unique reaction-drive rotor system, the CRW concept eliminates the need for a heavier and more complex mechanical drive train and transmission, as well as the need for an anti-torque system.
An operational CRW would be able to take off and land within confined areas, rapidly transition to and from a fixed-wing mode, and operate at speeds in excess of 400 knots. Potential manned and unmanned missions for such a vehicle include reconnaissance, armed escort, tactical air support, communications/ data relay and logistics re-supply. With such flexibility, operations could originate from small-deck ships or forward bases.
Development of the technology demonstrators is being conducted by Phantom Works personnel in Mesa, Arizona, St. Louis, Missouri, as well as several other Boeing facilities. Final assembly of two X-50A demonstrators has been completed at the Mesa facility, with a first f light expected in early 2003.
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