A. Lee Graham
Reporter
Bell Helicopter Inc. of Fort Worth and Lockheed Martin Corp. have teamed up on the Bell V-280 Valor, making Lockheed Martin the first of Bell’s V-280 program tier one team members.
More team members will be announced in coming months.
“We are very excited about teaming with Lockheed Martin on the V-280,” said John Garrison, president and CEO of Bell Helicopter in a news release.
A Lockheed Martin spokesman echoed that sentiment. The Maryland company’s aeronautics segment is based in Fort Worth.
“We made the strategic decision to invest in a mission system and provide Bell Helicopter with this leap-ahead combat capability on the V-280 Valor,” said Dale P. Bennett, executive vice president, Lockheed Martin Mission Systems and Training.
The Bell V-280 Valor recently was selected by the U.S. Army to enter into negotiations for the Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator program, with contracts expected to be awarded sometime this month.
What Bell called the Valor’s versatile design can perform missions with unparalleled speed, range and agility, making the aircraft a combat multiplier. The company called the V-280 the most advanced and operationally effective vertical lift solution, providing the warfighter a decisive advantage.
Bell Helicopter, a wholly owned subsidiary of Textron Inc., builds commercial and military, manned and unmanned vertical-lift aircraft. Its global workforce serves customers flying Bell aircraft in more than 120 countries. More information is available at www.textron.com.