Textron Inc. announced today that Bell Textron Inc., a Textron company, has been awarded the development contract for the U.S. Army’s Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) program.

BELL V-280 Valor vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft

The award is based on Bell’s V-280 Valor tiltrotor, which was developed and tested as part of the Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator (JMR TD) program that began in 2013. The V-280 progressed through design, manufacturing, and more than three years of rigorous flight testing, providing extensive data validating the technical and operational advantages of the aircraft for the long-range assault mission.

“This is an exciting time for the U.S. Army, Bell, and Team Valor as we modernize the Army’s aviation capabilities for decades to come. Bell has a long history supporting Army Aviation, and we are ready to equip Soldiers with the speed and range they need to compete and win using the most mature, reliable, and affordable high-performance long-range assault weapon system in the world,” said Mitch Snyder, president and CEO of Bell.

The initial contract refines the weapon system design, sustainability, digital enterprise, manufacturing, systems integration, flight testing, and airworthiness qualification. This award builds on Bell’s history of more than 85 years, delivering over 30,000 trusted vertical lift products to military and commercial customers in the U.S. and around the world.

The Bell V-280 Valor is a tiltrotor aircraft being developed by Bell and Lockheed Martin for the United States Army’s Future Vertical Lift (FVL) program.

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BELL V-280 Valor vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft