The US Army has selected United Technologies’ unit Collins Aerospace Systems to provide critical expertise in the development of Future Vertical Lift (FVL).
Collins will serve as a mission systems integrator (MSI) for the Joint Multi-Role (JMR) Mission Systems Architecture Demonstration (MSAD) programme, which will provide critical information to the Department of Defense to develop a strategy for FVL.
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FVL is expected to eventually replace every army helicopter in the US.
The company will be responsible for the design and demonstration of the next generation of cyber-hardened mission system architecture.
It will also design model-based systems engineering tools and processes that are required to develop and integrate the avionics on FVL.
Collins Aerospace Military Avionics and Helicopters vice-president and general manager Dave Schreck said: “Collins Aerospace has been a pioneer in open systems architecture for more than 30 years such as CAAS avionics for the army’s Special Operations fleet in 2001 and other pathfinder programmes leading the way for OSA-based avionics upgrades on over 20 different aircraft types.
“We know our history of innovation will be beneficial in reducing the overall lifecycle costs and risks associated with this next-generation fleet of vertical lift platforms.”
Collins Aerospace Systems will serve as an MSI for the JMR MSAD programme, which is set to conclude in December next year.
It is also working with JMR demonstrator aircraft developers and has products on the Sikorsky-Boeing SB-1 Defiant compound helicopter and the Bell V-280 Valor tiltrotor, flightglobal.com reported.
Collins Aerospace was created last year by bringing together UTC Aerospace Systems and Rockwell Collins.
