Piasecki Aircraft Corp. (PiAC) has received a $37 million contract from the U.S. Air Force (USAF) to fund the development of its Aerial Reconfigurable Embedded System (ARES) tilt-duct VTOL aircraft and hydrogen fuel cell propulsion technologies, the company announced Tuesday.
The $37 million was awarded by the USAF’s Afwerx research and development program as part of its strategic funding increase (STRATFI) initiative, which is available for small businesses that have won Phase 2 contracts from the agency’s small business innovation research and technology transfer (SBIR/STTR) programs. STRATFI is designed to help “bridge the valley of death” between technology development and commercialization, according to the USAF.
Originally developed under a DARPA program as a collaboration between PiAC, Lockheed Martin, and Sierra Nevada Corp., the ARES is an optionally crewed VTOL aircraft powered by twin ducted fans on a tiltwing. After investing 10 years and more than $89 million into research and development, DARPA canceled the ARES program in 2019, citing cost overruns and schedule slips. Now PiAC is continuing the program with its propulsion partner Honeywell, thanks to follow-on funding from the USAF and the Army. According to PiAC, an ARES prototype is on track to begin flight testing this year.
“This new funding will allow us to demonstrate ARES’s unique tilt-duct configuration, which enables seamless transition between hover and fixed-wing forward flight—a technological leap that would address critical aerial challenges faced by the U.S. military,” said PiAC CEO John Piasecki.
In addition to an ARES flight test campaign, the new funding will support the development of a hydrogen fuel cell powertrain for VTOL aircraft, including the PA-890 hydrogen-powered helicopter. Piasecki said the funds “will rapidly expand our ability to deliver these radically new vehicles to customers and partners across the military and commercial sectors.”
The PA-890 will be powered by ZeroAvia’s high-temperature proton exchange membrane (HTPEM) fuel cell system, and PiAC plans to work with ZeroAvia to integrate the system into other types of VTOL aircraft, such as the ARES. PiAC aims to fly a subscale technology demonstrator of the slowed-rotor winged helicopter by the end of this year as it works toward FAA type certification in 2028.
“Higher temperature fuel cells are a critical technology to delivering improvements in specific power and unlocking truly clean propulsion for larger fixed-wing aircraft, but they will also enable rotorcraft and VTOL applications,” said ZeroAvia founder and CEO Val Miftakhov. “Working together on this project with a company of Piasecki’s heritage and expertise in rotorcraft, with U.S. Air Force backing, is a hugely exciting step in delivering on our vision of hydrogen-electric engines in every aircraft.”
The PA-890 hydrogen-powered helicopter is expected to be able to carry a pilot and up to seven passengers on trips of over 200 miles. Its maximum payload is 1,660 pounds and the maximum takeoff weight is 7,000 pounds. PiAC says the aircraft will primarily be used for defense applications such as emergency medical flights, cargo logistics, and personnel transport, although it could potentially also be employed for commercial air taxi operations. Compared with today’s fossil fuel turbine helicopters, the PA-890 will provide a 50 percent reduction in operating costs, and it will be significantly quieter, all while producing zero emissions.
