Developments over the past few weeks have reinforced my views about the future of battlefield air support. I have four points:
- The Russian Army’s helicopter force continues to suffer high casualty rates in Ukraine, which indicates that direct attack against sophisticated air defenses is very challenging.
- However, recent reinforcement of the helicopter force in Berdyansk, mostly out of Ukrainian missile range, with its own standoff missiles, indicates that the Russian Army is learning from past failures.
- The Italian Army has already pursued this standoff weapons approach, and the US Army is close behind.
- However, a full analysis of alternatives for the US Army’s Future Attack and Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) could produce a very different result than presumed.
The result is that technologists, industrialists, and investors should consider a future in which tilt-rotors are more important to combat aviation than conventional helicopters, and perhaps other types of aircraft as well.
Firms mentioned in this report include Bell, Boeing, Leonardo, Lockheed Martin, Rafael, Russian Helicopters, Sikorsky, and Thales.
Download my full four-page analysis through the link below:
Download Further thoughts on battlefield rotorcraft 20230620
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