Airbus Helicopters backs revised speed targets for NATO's next rotorcraft

Airbus Helicopters CEO Matthieu Louvot has welcomed adjustments to the performance targets for a future NATO military rotorcraft, saying the company has the right design for the requirement.

The Next Generation Rotorcraft Capability programme is run by the NATO Support and Procurement Agency on behalf of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK. It aims to field a new fleet between 2035 and 2040.

Airbus Helicopters, Leonardo Helicopters and Sikorsky are each taking part in a concept design phase. Boeing has decided not to compete for the work.

The programme's performance goals have been revised, including a higher speed objective understood to be around 240kt (444km/h). That compares with an earlier figure of 220kt or more, and no less than 180kt.

Speaking at the company's MDays event near Marseille on 8 October, Louvot said thinking around speed has widened in the latest NATO study specifications. He said his company supports that shift, noting that speed brings benefits but creates drawbacks once an aircraft crosses a certain threshold, since changing its architecture adds cost and complexity. In a constrained budget, he said, achieving that speed means trading away other attributes. He added that customers appear to grasp this trade-off.

Louvot said Airbus Helicopters is prepared to meet different speed demands. Its Racer compound concept, he said, delivers more speed without altering the aircraft's fundamental architecture, retains a high degree of commonality, and offers strong performance.