WASHINGTON — As the race to create a new program to train Army helicopter pilots at Fort Rucker advances, at least two companies have been selected to move into the final phase of the competition before an award is expected in September.
Longtime helicopter manufacturer Bell and aviation training services specialist M1 said they were selected to move into Phase IV of the Flight School Next competition, a multi-faceted program that will provide the helos, a new curriculum and a new acquisition model.
Bell is offering its 505 model and is serving as its own prime, while M1 is serving as a prime contractor but using Robinson Helicopter’s R-66 helo.
“Bell is proud to be selected for the fourth phase of the Flight School Next competition alongside our teammates,” John Novalis II, strategic director of Flight School Next at Bell, said in a statement today. “From the very beginning, our team set out to deliver the most cost-effective and low-risk solution for the Army’s Initial Entry Rotary Wing (IERW) program at Fort Rucker[.]”
The company added that it will be working with DigiFlight, Delaware Resource Group, V2X, Alpha 1 Aerospace, Semper Fly and TRU Simulation to deliver its full “turn key solution” to the Army.
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M1 announced its approval for Phase IV on March 27. The company’s Executive Program Director for Flight School Next Tom Drew said in M1’s announcement, “We are excited to demonstrate several game-changing technologies to accelerate learning and build student pilot proficiency.”
“M1 brings an immersive training experience and significant increase in flight hours to fundamentally transform Army flight training,” the retired Army major general said.
Serving as a prime, M1 would be responsible for handling all the finances, big-picture repairs, supply chain management, logistical support and more. Robinson, performing as a sub, will handle supplying the air frames, spare parts, component-level repairs and technical support. M1 said in a previously released statement that it will be partnering with General Dynamics Information Technology, Quantum Helicopters and the University of North Dakota Aerospace Foundation for the competition in addition to Robinson.
Initially, Lockheed Martin and M1 were each competing as primes — both using Robinson’s R-66 aircraft — but Lockheed told Breaking Defense in a statement today that the company was not selected to move into Phase IV of the competition.
“While we are disappointed to learn we were not selected to continue to the next phase of the competition, we are proud of the innovative turnkey training solutions we matured throughout the process,” a spokesperson told Breaking Defense. “We look forward to leveraging the capabilities we developed in support of Flight School Next for future turnkey training opportunities.”
The incumbent flight school vendor Airbus replied to the original call-for-solutions notice in November, and previously told Breaking Defense it was bidding its UH-72 Lakota fleet. The company did not respond to a request for comment today by the time of publication.
Other companies originally vying for the program include Leonardo with its TH-73 helo and Boeing as its prime; MD Helicopters with its 530 helo; and Enstrom Helicopters with its 480B model. Spokespeople for Boeing and MD Helicopters did not respond to a request for comment today. An Enstrom spokesperson told Breaking Defense it was a subcontractor working with a prime, which a spokesperson declined to identify, but said that prime “elected to not proceed to Phase III” of the competition.
For whoever else is left, according to the original commercial solutions opening (CSO) for Flight School Next posted in December, Phase IV entails the companies showcasing their academic instruction and materials, training materials, simulators and more. During this phase members of the Army’s “technical evaluation team” will also fly the aircraft to make sure it meets all of the Aviation Center of Excellence’s standards.
The CSO added that the service’s goal is to make an award by the end of September, and eventually aims to provide training for 900 to 1,500 rotary wing pilots per year, with a period of performance of 26 years. An Army spokesperson declined to comment on the competition today “due to the sensitive nature of the source selection process.”
