WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Sept. 7, 2021 – Today the Sikorsky-Boeing team released the following statement on the early submittal of the proposal for DEFIANT X™ for the U.S. Army’s Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA).

This statement can be attributed to Paul Lemmo, president, Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, and to Mark Cherry, vice president and general manager, Vertical Lift, Boeing Defense, Space & Security:

“Continuing a 75-year partnership with the U.S. Army, providing and sustaining the iconic BLACK HAWK, Chinook and Apache, the Lockheed Martin Sikorsky-Boeing team looks to the future with the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft - DEFIANT X. Today, Team DEFIANT completed and submitted the proposal for the U.S. Army’s FLRAA competition, offering low-risk, transformational capability that delivers on an Army critical modernization priority and advances the future of Army aviation. DEFIANT X delivers speed where it matters, survivability, unsurpassed power, maneuverability, superior handling in any environment and lower lifecycle costs – while operating in the same footprint as the BLACK HAWK. We are confident that DEFIANT X, supported by our longstanding Army industrial base suppliers, is the best choice for delivering overmatch on the Multi-Domain Operational battlefield in INDOPACOM and across the globe.”

For more information on DEFIANT X and Future Vertical Lift, visit https://www.lockheedmartin.com/fvl.

About Sikorsky and Boeing
Together, Sikorsky and Boeing have built 90 percent of the U.S. Army’s current military rotorcraft and have totaled more than 20 million flight hours. We’re the team that has brought forward iconic military rotorcraft including: Black Hawk, Chinook and Apache. The iconic UH-60 Black Hawk has proven itself to be the premiere assault platform in the world and DEFIANT X will bring the next level of capability that the Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft requires. 
 

Additional background:

• The Sikorsky-Boeing team continues to conduct flight tests and expand SB>1 DEFIANT’s flight envelope. This test data is correlating the DEFIANT X virtual models and was included in our proposal to the U.S. Army.
• Together, Sikorsky and Boeing, supported by a nationwide Army industrial base of suppliers, have more than 20 million Army flight hours of proven performance over the last 75 years. We are committed to delivering a weapon system that delivers transformational capability and affordability across the entire system, over the full lifecycle – including efficient sustainment, reuse of military construction and minimized training time and costs.
• We’ve designed-in affordability through ease of maintenance, reliability and advanced manufacturing techniques.  Our investments in digital transformation, configuration design and aircraft sizing have driven a best-value solution for the Army. DEFIANT X has the same operational footprint as the BLACK HAWK allowing the Army to leverage existing operations, airfield configurations and hangars, avoiding costly infrastructure investment. And because our configuration flies like a helicopter with enhanced capabilities, training pilots is similar to the training that exists in the Army today.
• Our digital design and advanced manufacturing enables the Army to lower cost across the entire lifecycle of the platform – including fleet management affordability and efficiency and rapid, affordable upgrades.
• DEFIANT X is designed for fleet reliability and availability, including long maintenance-free operating periods, real-time vehicle heath management and fewer parts.
• Our open system approach allows the Army to easily modernize DEFIANT X over time, providing the flexibility and adaptability needed to stay ahead of the evolving threat as missions and conditions change.