By Dean Murray
A regular military member has flown a remote-control Black Hawk helicopter after less than an hour's training.
A U.S. Army National Guard Sergeant First Class became the first to independently plan, command and execute one of the OPV's (Optionally Piloted Vehicle) missions using the system’s handheld tablet.
A National Guardsman has flown a remote-control Black Hawk helicopter after less than an hour's training. (Sikorsky/Lockheed Martin via SWNS)
He directed the payload to a location 70 nautical miles away and commanded multiple precision airborne drops, marking the first time OPV Black Hawk operated fully under the control of a soldier, instead of a trained test pilot or engineer.
The test mission was carried out at this year's Northern Strike, the United States Department of Defense's largest annual joint military readiness exercise. A standby pilot was in the helicopter as a safety measure and to comply with aviation regulations.
(Sikorsky/Lockheed Martin via SWNS)
Rich Benton, vice president and general manager of Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, said: “With lives on the line, Sikorsky’s MATRIX flight autonomy system can transform how military operators perform their missions.
"An optionally piloted Black Hawk aircraft can reduce pilot workload in a challenging environment or complete a resupply mission without humans on board. In contested logistics situations, a Black Hawk operating as a large drone offers commanders greater resilience and flexibility to get resources to the point of need.”
The MATRIX technology, which supports DARPA’s Aircrew Labor In-cockpit Automation System (ALIAS), gives operators control of advanced aviation, a capability once reserved for trained pilots, enabling resupply, personnel recovery and contested logistics missions in dangerous or low-visibility areas without putting human life at risk.