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Bell Textron announced Tuesday that the company will build a production facility in Fort Worth, TX to support production of the Future Long Range Assault Aircraft.
The 447,000-square foot factory will focus on component manufacturing, according to a company press release. Bell plans to have the facility ready for when FLRAA, the eventual replacement for the Black Hawk, enters low-rate initial production in 2028.
Lisa Atherton, president and CEO of Bell, said in a statement Tuesday that the company is “committed to establishing future manufacturing locations to deliver the first fielded aircraft by the early 2030s and do our part to revolutionize U.S. Army aviation.”
Bell won the FLRAA contract in December 2022, and the program moved to milestone B this past summer. Army officials have said that even when the new aircraft enter service after 2030, it will not be a one-for-one replacement for the Black Hawk.
Bell has established multiple manufacturing facilities since the Army awarded the FLRAA contract two years ago, and the company plans to continue design maturation and prototyping during the current engineering and manufacturing development stage.
Brig. Gen. David Phillips, the Army’s program executive officer for aviation, said in a statement Tuesday that the service is “committed to delivering the Future Long Range Assault Aircraft providing the speed, range and endurance needed to conduct effective air assault, MEDEVAC and resupply missions for future large scale combat operations.”
“It is great to see our industry partners share in that commitment by investing in state-of-the-art facilities to produce the Army’s first 'born digital' aircraft weapon system,” he said.