Stratford aerospace manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. has chosen six Connecticut suppliers among 35 for its new civilian helicopter that travels twice as fast as conventional rotary craft.
Sikorsky selected the suppliers from 20 states to join the team working on two prototype S-97 Raider helicopters. The Raider is Sikorsky’s self-funded program to demonstrate the military applications of its X2 rotorcraft design. The X2 has vertical lift rotors allowing the aircraft to take off as a traditional helicopter, but the aircraft has a horizontal propulsion system enabling it to travel faster than traditional designs. The top cruise speed for a prototype is 253 mph.
The six Connecticut suppliers on the team are: Stamford-based Hexcel, working on the structure and blades for the Raider; Bloomfield-based Kamatics Specialty Bearings, working on the rotors and transmission; Kensington-based Rotating Composite Technologies, working on the blades; Berlin-based TigHitco, working on the propulsion system; Milford-based Spectrum Associates, Inc., working on the propulsion system; and Windsor Locks-based Hamilton Sundstrand, working on the avionics, rotors and transmission.
Hamilton Sundstrand, like Sikorsky, is a subsidiary of Hartford-based United Technologies Corp. Kamatics Specialty Bearings is a subsidiary of Bloomfield-based Kaman Corp.
Sikorsky will invest 75 percent of the Raider program’s cost, and the suppliers will kick in the remaining 25 percent.
The Raider will be designed for armed reconnaissance and light attack missions, hosting a variety of sensors and weapons and the flexibility to carry fuel and ammunition for extended missions. In special operations configuration, the helicopter can carry up to six troops.
