The demonstrator’s delay for first flight can be attributed to challenges in manufacturing its complex rotor blades for the helicopter’s coaxial design, Dan Bailey, the U.S. The Sikorsky-Boeing SB-1 Defiant coaxial helicopter is now expected to start flying some time in the first half of 2018. The other prototype’s first flight has fallen behind the originally intended goal of September. The Valor is designed to meet what the Army wants for a future vertical lift aircraft: one that can go twice as fast, twice as far with increased agility and flexible payloads. Bell Helicopter’s V-280 Valor tilt-rotor aircraft flew for the first time Monday in a low hover over the ground, according to an official tuned into the proceedings. Army and represents a transformational aircraft for all the challenging missions our armed forces are asked to undertake.” The Valor is designed to revolutionize vertical lift for the U.S. “First flight demonstrates our commitment to supporting the Department of Defense leadership’s modernization priorities and acquisition reform initiatives.

“This is an exciting time for Bell Helicopter and I could not be more proud of the progress we have made with first flight of the Bell V-280,” Mitch Snyder, Bell Helicopter’s president and CEO, said in a statement. There seems to be a lot of questions surrounding Bells V-280 Valor, including how it differs from the V-22 Osprey and how the company intends on making the case that its second iteration of. El Ejército de Tierra estadounidense ha firmado un contrato con Bell Textron Inc.

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