The U.S. Army orders three additional Black Hawk UH-60MXs to expand autonomous flight testing

[Reporter Tu Jumin/Comprehensive Report] The U.S. Army is accelerating the verification of the use of unmanned helicopters and has ordered three more UH-60MX "Black Hawk" helicopters from Sikorsky, which will be equipped with the MATRIX autonomous flight system to expand testing of single, double and even unmanned operation modes. This batch of new aircraft will join the first UH-60MX delivered in March this year, giving the US military more actual aircraft to verify autonomous flight tactics and logistics applications.

The foreign military news website "Army Recognition" reported that Jason Wrigley, director of business development for the Sikorsky Black Hawk, recently confirmed that it has obtained a new contract for three UH-60MX aircraft, but did not announce the amount, signing date, or delivery schedule. At this stage, these helicopters are still mainly for testing and evaluation and have not yet been directly integrated into combat units.

The UH-60MX helicopter is equipped with a full-authority fly-by-wire flight control system and integrates Sikorsky MATRIX independent technology, which can support reduced-crew operations in addition to traditional two-person piloting, and even completely unmanned flight. Relevant technologies can assist in the automatic execution of flight missions and reduce pilot workload. In the future, they are expected to be used in tasks such as supply and reconnaissance in high-threat environments to reduce the risk of crew members being exposed to enemy firepower.

On the other hand, Sekowsky is also simultaneously promoting the "Black Hawk 2070" modernization concept, planning to replace the T901 with a new engine with a horsepower increase of about 50%, increase the range by about 100 nautical miles, and introduce a new digital architecture, modular nose and drone integration capabilities, so that the Black Hawk can double as a drone command node in the future. In addition, Sekowsky is also developing the completely unmanned S-70UAS "U-Hawk", which replaces the traditional cockpit with a cargo door and focuses on autonomous supply and drone deployment. It is expected to make its first flight before the end of this year.