Photo: Sikorsky
What is cheaper: developing an autonomous aircraft from scratch, or gifting an existing one with the tools it needs to fly itself? The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) seems to think the latter approach is one way to go, so it proceeded down this path earlier this week.
Autonomous helicopters have been in the works for years now, and that means we're already getting to see some incipient results. One such development might take the form of a self-flying Black Hawk helicopter, for which DARPA just gave one of the biggest names in this sector, Sikorsky, a contract worth $6 million.
The first time we've heard about a Black Hawk that can fly itself was back in 2022, when the so-called Optionally Piloted Vehicle took to the sky. The flight was repeated several times since, each time increasing in complexity as far as both the mission and the gear used to make such flights possible are concerned.
In February 2024, for instance, the Black Hawk flew alongside a modified S-76B medium-size rotorcraft called Sikorsky Autonomy Research Aircraft (SARA) while using an autonomous software suite called Matrix in Sikorsky's speak, part of DARPA's Aircrew Labor In-Cockpit Automation System (ALIAS) program.
The same system is at the center of the contract announced this week. The helicopter maker will spend the money DARPA gave it to incorporate the ALIAS/Matrix into another UH-60M helo that should be "a near-exact copy of Sikorsky's UH-60A fly-by-wire Optionally Piloted Black Hawk helicopter."
The new machine will be called MX, and it should be ready sometime next year. It's not meant to be used in military (or some other kind of) operations, but it too will act as a test bed for the technology.
We're not told when the first flight of the MX will take place, but when it takes to the sky it will be used to put through their paces various sensor suites meant to perceive and avoid threats, but also to inform its operators on the standards and system specifications that will be needed to turn more Black Hawks autonomous, and allow them to operate safely.
That's right, this does not seem to be just an exercise meant to determine what can be done, but an actual plan to make these military machines capable of flying themselves in the near future. The investment should be worth it, considering how the family is expected to serve the needs of American and allied soldiers well into the 2070s.
Hopes are autonomous Black Hawks will reduce pilot workload, improve flight safety, and allow the military to conduct operations in dangerous areas, regardless of weather conditions, without placing American lives at risk.
At the time of writing there is no public timetable on the integration of autonomous systems into the Black Hawk fleet.
The first time we've heard about a Black Hawk that can fly itself was back in 2022, when the so-called Optionally Piloted Vehicle took to the sky. The flight was repeated several times since, each time increasing in complexity as far as both the mission and the gear used to make such flights possible are concerned.
In February 2024, for instance, the Black Hawk flew alongside a modified S-76B medium-size rotorcraft called Sikorsky Autonomy Research Aircraft (SARA) while using an autonomous software suite called Matrix in Sikorsky's speak, part of DARPA's Aircrew Labor In-Cockpit Automation System (ALIAS) program.
The same system is at the center of the contract announced this week. The helicopter maker will spend the money DARPA gave it to incorporate the ALIAS/Matrix into another UH-60M helo that should be "a near-exact copy of Sikorsky's UH-60A fly-by-wire Optionally Piloted Black Hawk helicopter."
The new machine will be called MX, and it should be ready sometime next year. It's not meant to be used in military (or some other kind of) operations, but it too will act as a test bed for the technology.
We're not told when the first flight of the MX will take place, but when it takes to the sky it will be used to put through their paces various sensor suites meant to perceive and avoid threats, but also to inform its operators on the standards and system specifications that will be needed to turn more Black Hawks autonomous, and allow them to operate safely.
That's right, this does not seem to be just an exercise meant to determine what can be done, but an actual plan to make these military machines capable of flying themselves in the near future. The investment should be worth it, considering how the family is expected to serve the needs of American and allied soldiers well into the 2070s.
Hopes are autonomous Black Hawks will reduce pilot workload, improve flight safety, and allow the military to conduct operations in dangerous areas, regardless of weather conditions, without placing American lives at risk.
At the time of writing there is no public timetable on the integration of autonomous systems into the Black Hawk fleet.
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