The US Army has officially designated its Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) and named the first unit set to operate the Black Hawk’s replacement.
Speaking at an annual army aviation conference in Tennessee, Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James Mingus announced that the next-generation rotorcraft will be designated MV-75 once it enters service.
Mingus also revealed that the MV-75 will be fielded with the “Screaming Eagles” of the 101st Airborne Division in Fort Campbell, Kentucky.
“This decision makes sense,” he stated. “The 101st is a formation built to deploy rapidly and operate in austere conditions… That decision was based on their mission profile and theater demands.”
He added that the division frequently flies into contested environments, which demand speed, endurance, and reliability.
FLRAA Program
In 2022, the US Army named Bell Textron as the winner of the FLRAA program after beating a joint offering from Lockheed Martin’s Sikorsky and Boeing.
The tiltrotor is expected to expand battlefield depth by extending the reach of air assault missions.
The winning V-280 Valor reportedly offers twice the speed and range of existing military helicopters.
Bell was only cleared to begin prototyping in August 2024 after Lockheed Martin protested the contract award, arguing that its Defiant X coaxial rotor design was more capable and cost-effective than the selected platform.
Unclear Timeline
Although the aircraft now has an official designation and a first unit assignment, its deployment timeline remains unclear.
Col. Jeffrey Poquette, the army’s FLRAA project manager, told Defense News the service is currently targeting 2030 for initial fielding.
However, during a recent House Appropriations defense subcommittee hearing, US Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George said that timeline could shift to an earlier date.
“We’re just figuring out what we can do by working with them on how we can pull it as far left,” he said, suggesting 2028 is now under consideration.
