Sikorsky has completed initial ground and flight testing of its Nomad 100 uncrewed aerial system (UAS) in collaboration with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Early VTOL Aircraft Demonstration (EVADE) program.
Why It Matters:
The milestone marks another step forward in delivering high-performing uncrewed systems to servicemembers operating in rapidly evolving, contested environments. Lockheed Martin’s innovation investments are accelerating next-generation autonomy and crewed-uncrewed teaming capabilities that provide operators at the tactical edge with decisive advantages: speed, precision and mission-critical reliability in the most demanding conditions.
“Nomad 100’s ongoing flight testing reflects our commitment to advancing autonomous technology while delivering safe and reliable mission capabilities that equip customers to fill critical operational gaps,” said Rich Benton, vice president and general manager, Sikorsky. “Nomad will serve as part of a crewed-uncrewed team complementing missions anywhere from austere forward operating bases to ship decks and unimproved landing zones.”
Next, Sikorsky will advance Nomad 100 through an intensive flight test campaign at a government facility, replicating a host of multirole Nomad 100 missions.
At a Glance:
- The Nomad 100 is a variant of Sikorsky’s novel rotor blown wing architecture, delivering the vertical lift and hover capabilities of a helicopter with the speed, range, and endurance of a fixed-wing aircraft.
- The twin prop-rotor system enables vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL), hover, cruise on the wing, and runway independent operations in all weather conditions across land and sea.
- Nomad aircraft function as part of a team of crewed and uncrewed platforms to deliver integrated, full-spectrum mission solutions.
Nomad represents Sikorsky’s entry into the UAS market, marrying decades of advanced rotorcraft and autonomy expertise with AI, advanced manufacturing, and electric propulsion to deliver a high-performance, lower-cost, scalable VTOL platform that extends the company’s legacy into the next generation of uncrewed aerial solutions.
DARPA selected Sikorsky’s MATRIX™ autonomous technology to be the autonomy solution integrated into all five platforms performing under the EVADE program.
Sikorsky’s other fully-autonomous platforms include the S-70UAS™ U-Hawk™ and the hybrid electric demonstrator (HEX), which are also enabled by MATRIX autonomous technology. MATRIX is the industry standard for safe and reliable autonomy, representing 1,000+ flight hours logged, 500+ successful tests and demonstrations, 100+ operators trained from the Department of War and firefighting communities, and 20+ different platforms integrated to date.
Lockheed Martin continues to push the forefront of autonomy with a mission‑centric evolution that moves beyond simple “self‑fly” or “self‑drive” concepts to operator commanded systems that can plan, execute and adapt complex operations in a dynamic environment.
