As the United States' military plans to retire the iconic Black Hawk helicopter, America's next big aircraft is between two "supercopters," the Sikorsky-Boeing SB-1 Defiant and Lockheed Martin V-280 Valor. Utilizing the best of today's technology, these two top-of-the-line machines could very well be America's next symbol of air superiority, according to The Daily Mail.
The prototypes of the Defiant and the Valor should start flying in 2017, in a project dubbed the "Joint Multi Role Technology Demonstrator Air Vehicle," which involves the U.S. military's Future Vertical Lift (FVL) program to replace the long-serving Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk and Boeing AH-64E Apache, reports Vice News.
The Sikorsky-Boeing SB-1 Defiant is essentially a compound helicopter equipped with co-axial rotors and a pusher propeller. Equipped with the T55 engine, the Defiant uses the same engine that powers the massive CH-47 Chinook. Quick and nimble, the Defiant is able to fly at speeds of up to 290 mph, with the ability to rapidly accelerate and decelerate.
The Lockheed Martin V-280 Valor features an advanced tilt-rotor design that is inspired by the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey. It is, however, leagues beyond the model it was derived from, with unmatched speed, range and payload, and agility.
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