A Fort Worth-based defense giant will build a new prototype military aircraft with a mysterious-sounding name.
Bell was awarded a contract for the X-plane, a Speed and Runway Independent Technologies, or SPRINT, project that sounds like it could be the aircraft for a superhero or covert government team. The contract was awarded by DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Bell will design and build the SPRINT X-plane demonstrator, an aircraft with folding wings and hovering capabilities that is intended to fly at 400 to 450 knots. The flight test program seeks to validate technology that can be scaled to different sizes of military aircraft, the defense agency said.
Jason Hurst, Bell senior vice president of engineering, said the company is honored to have been selected for the program.
“This is an achievement we’ve been working towards for over 10 years, as we’ve leveraged our nearly 90-year history of X-plane development to bring new technology to our warfighters,” he said in a statement.
Bell completed conceptual and preliminary design efforts for the X-plane. The company’s upcoming work will include detailed design and building before the aircraft is flight tested, the company said in a news release.
“In preparation for X-plane development, Bell has completed significant risk reduction activities including demonstrating folding rotor, integrated propulsion, and flight control technologies at Holloman Air Force Base (in New Mexico) as well as wind tunnel testing at the National Institute for Aviation Research at Wichita State University (in Kansas),” the company said.
The military chose Bell over Boeing’s Aurora Flight Services for the continuing aircraft development.
Bell developed high-speed vertical lift technology that is used on aircraft such as the X-14, X-22, XV-3 and XV-15 for NASA, the U.S. Army and the U.S. Air Force.
The company plans to build a $632 million, 448,000-square-foot factory in north Fort Worth to build the Future Long Range Assault Aircraft. Gov. Greg Abbott, Mayor Mattie Parker, Bell CEO Lisa Atherton and other leaders announced the project on Dec. 17, 2024.
The factory is expected to create more than 500 full-time jobs with an average annual salary of $85,000 by the end of 2039. The long range assault aircraft contract, awarded in 2022, could end up worth about $70 billion over the long term.
Eric E. Garcia is a senior business reporter at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at eric.garcia@fortworthreport.org.
News decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
Related
Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative for adhering to standards for ethical journalism.
Republish This Story
Republishing is free for noncommercial entities. Commercial entities are prohibited without a licensing agreement. Contact us for details.