Rick Spicer, Boeing’s deputy capture team lead for the company’s CSAR efforts, told reporters Sept. 27 at AFA’s Air and Space Conference in Washington that it would probably be the last time he would get to make a pitch for the HH-47 before the expected November CSAR-X aircraft award. Spicer touted the US Special Operations Command’s MH-47 combat experience in Afghanistan and Iraq, since the HH-47 is 95 percent common with the MH-47Gs. He also discussed the new digital open architecture cockpit, digital flight controls, and advanced visibility and countermeasure capabilities.
As Air Force leaders consider concepts of operations for Collaborative Combat Aircraft, sustainment in the field—and easing that support by using standard parts and limiting variants—should be a key consideration, according to a new study from AFA's Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Studies.