The UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter flew in fully unmanned mode for the first time
The American UH-60 Black Hawk multipurpose helicopter flew for the first time in fully unmanned mode, Defense News writes, referring to the Sikorsky company.
The first test took place on February 5 at the Fort Campbell military base in Kentucky (USA). A helicopter without a person inside flew over a military facility for half an hour. The drone was tested for the second time on February 7. During the tests, a helicopter flight was simulated between the skyscrapers of New York.
The corresponding experiment took place within the framework of the Aircrew Labor In-Cockpit Automation System (ALIAS) program, supported by the Office of Advanced Research Projects of the US Department of Defense. Sikorsky has been working on the project for about six years.
The flight autonomy of the UH-60 Black Hawk was provided by the Sikorsky MATRIX system, originally designed to control the aircraft in conditions of limited visibility.
In December 2021, Flight Global magazine published the World Air Forces 2022 handbook, according to which the UH-60 Black Hawk family of aircraft became the most common helicopter in the world. Russian multi-purpose vehicles of the Mi-8/Mi-17 family became the second. The third place was taken by the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter.
