X2 breaks speed record

Sikorsky’s X2 Technology demonstrator has unofficially broken a speed record for rotorcraft.

Gary Parsons - 27-Jul-2010

Sikorsky image

July 27: Sikorsky’s X2 Technology demonstrator unofficially broke a speed record for rotorcraft yesterday.

In a one-hour test flight from the company’s Development Flight Centre at West Palm Beach in Florida, Chief Pilot Kevin Bredenbeck achieved a maximum speed of 225 knots, beating the previous record of 216 knots for a 3,500 kg class of rotorcraft set by a Westland Lynx in the mid-1980s.

Jim Kagdis, Programme Manager of Advanced Programs for Sikorsky said “Vibration levels and aircraft performance have continued to meet or exceed our expectations, so we are pleased to report that all systems are ‘go’ in our mission to achieve a 250-knot cruise speed later this year.”

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