Watch: Sikorsky’s S-97 Raider Flies 247 Knots As Flight Envelope Expands 

Sikorsky S-97 Raider is a one-of-a-kind helicopter part of the US Army’s Future Vertical Lift Program.

The S-97 Raider prototype is part of Sikorsky’s entry into the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft competition for the Army to replace the aging UH-60 Black Hawk and Apache attack helicopters in the coming years. 

The latest video from Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company, posted on Lockheed Martin’s YouTube channel, shows the S-97 Raider traveling at 247 knots, or about 284 mph. For some context, most helicopters fly at an average speed of around 160 mph. 

According to Lockheed’s website, the S-97 Raider can fly “twice as far and twice as fast as the Black Hawk.” A development timeline shows the new helicopters will begin service at the end of this decade. That will be the moment when the Black Hawks are phased out. 

We have documented multiple test flights of the next-generation helicopter over the last several years. 

• Watch: Sikorsky-Boeing Conduct First Flight Of This Very Unusual Helicopter
• Watch Next-Gen Sikorsky-Boeing Helicopter Conduct “Rigorous Flight Test At High Speeds”

It seems like every flight. Test pilots are pushing the S-97 Raider harder and harder to understand its operational and combat limitations.