ALL THINGS CYBER
PMO, summarizes the FLRAA open systems approach,” she explained. “To ensure that, we do have an open architecture on our platform.”
Tis, she said, will make it easier and more affordable to upgrade and sustain, with the ability to do some of that sustainment on the government side or with third parties. Because of how the system is architected, there’s less reliance on the prime contrac- tor, which can help with sustainment costs.
SOLDIER TESTING AND TIMELINES Soldier testing and feedback are crucial when implementing new digital technology to ensure it meets real-world opera- tional needs. Direct input from end users helps identify usability issues, improve functionality and ensure the technology enhances mission effectiveness and Soldier readiness.
For the FLRAA program, there are two ways of achieving Soldier feedback. One is through special user evaluations, or Soldier touch points, using mockups of the aircraft to ensure optimal seat configurations and whether users can egress and ingress from the aircraft safely, etc. A user evaluation in spring 2025 observed how Soldiers conduct mission planning on the system, which will impact the software requirements for mission planning.
Another Soldier touch point is through virtual prototype simulation.
“We’re using the virtual prototype to help us get user feedback that can either support changing the user interfaces, our flight control laws, etc.,” Gilbert said. “We’re planning on using the virtual prototypes as part of special user evaluations all the way through our development stage. Tis will support iterative user feedback through development until we have physical aircraft prototypes.”
CONCLUSION Te FLRAA program has come a long way since April 2024, when FLRAA took a hybrid approach with a preliminary design using a middle tier of acquisition pathway and developed virtual prototypes. In July 2024, at Milestone B, it transitioned to a major capability acquisition program and program of record.
“We’re going to be focused on the detailed design in the near term, but our acquisition strategy is such that we don’t wait to complete our detailed design before we begin building our proto- types. We deliberately did that when we set up our acquisition
https://asc.ar my.mil 9
strategy so that once a subsystem reaches the appropriate level of maturity, it can immediately move into build and assembly,” Gilbert said. “Even though the design and supporting analy- sis may not be fully documented, we can begin building those subsystems with an informed level of risk. Tis helps support schedule objectives while maintaining rigor.”
Currently, the Army is scheduled to begin equipping the first Army unit in fiscal year 2030 and completing the first unit equipped in fiscal year 2031. “Our current focus is on getting the design right, which is crucial for successfully prototyping and future production,” Gilbert said. “We are building and testing prototypes to make a production decision by Milestone C, which is currently scheduled in 2028.”
“It [development] takes a few years, especially on an aviation plat- form because there’s a lot we have to do from an airworthiness perspective to ensure it’s safe,” Gilbert said. “We have a lot that we have to do before a Soldier can begin operating the system. Tat’s why using things like the virtual prototype and other things like mockups are so important to us—because it’s a way of getting them in early while we’re still proving out the airwor- thiness of the aircraft itself.”
For more information, go to
https://www.army.mil/PEOAviation.
CHERYL MARINO provides contract support to the U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, as a writer and editor for Army AL&T magazine and TMGL, LLC. Before USAASC, she served as a technical report editor at the Combat Capabilities Development Command Center at Picatinny Arsenal for five years. She holds a B.A. in communications from Seton Hall University and has more than 25 years of writing and editing experience in both the government and private sectors.
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