GE Aerospace to Equip US Army’s Future Long Range Assault Aircraft with Advanced Avionics.

On March 31, 2025, American Company GE Aerospace announced that it has been awarded a subcontract as part of a team led by Bell Textron Inc., a Textron Inc. company, to design, develop, and deliver advanced avionics systems for the U.S. Army’s Future Long Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) program. This award comes on the heels of Bell's announcement that the U.S. Army has approved Milestone B for the program, marking the transition into the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase — a significant milestone that signals confidence in the maturity of the aircraft’s design and its critical subsystems.
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The Bell V-280 Valor, selected for the U.S. Army’s Future Long Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) program, will be equipped with advanced avionics and a digital backbone developed by GE Aerospace to enable faster upgrades, real-time data sharing, and predictive maintenance. (Picture source: U.S. DoD)

The FLRAA (Future Long Range Assault Aircraft) is one of the cornerstone programs within the U.S. Army’s broader Future Vertical Lift (FVL) modernization strategy, which seeks to replace aging helicopter platforms and deliver leap-ahead capabilities in speed, range, survivability, and digital connectivity. The FLRAA will ultimately replace the venerable UH-60 Black Hawk, a mainstay of the U.S. Army's utility helicopter fleet since the late 1970s. After decades of reliable service, the Black Hawk has reached the limits of its growth potential. The FLRAA, by contrast, is designed from the ground up to meet the demands of future multi-domain operations and high-intensity conflicts, where speed, long-range maneuverability, and digital interoperability are essential.

The aircraft chosen for the FLRAA program is based on the Bell V-280 Valor, a next-generation tiltrotor platform that merges the vertical lift capabilities of a helicopter with the speed and range of a fixed-wing aircraft. The V-280 can fly at speeds exceeding 280 knots — roughly twice as fast as the Black Hawk — and offers a combat radius of over 500 nautical miles without refueling. These capabilities will allow Army units to respond faster, over greater distances, with improved access to denied or contested environments.

GE Aerospace’s contribution to the program centers on delivering the Digital Backbone — a high-speed, open-architecture framework designed to support rapid system integration and upgrades. The Digital Backbone played a critical role in the Army's Milestone B decision. According to Matt Burns, general manager of Avionics Systems at GE Aerospace, “The maturity of the digital backbone for the U.S. Army's Future Long Range Assault Aircraft was critical to passing Milestone B and entering the engineering and manufacturing development phase of the program.”

The Digital Backbone is built to support a Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA), which allows the Army to incorporate new technologies, mission systems, and software updates without relying solely on the original equipment manufacturer. This flexibility is a game-changer for military aviation. As Tanika Watson, general manager for Future Vertical Lift at GE Aerospace, explained, “The Digital Backbone provides the framework to make aircraft system modifications and realize the benefits of Modular Open Systems Approach designs from the outset of Future Vertical Lift programs.” This architecture also integrates Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN), enabling real-time, high-speed communication between onboard systems and external command networks — essential for the data-driven battlefield of the future.

GE Aerospace is also responsible for delivering the Health Awareness System for FLRAA. This system leverages decades of commercial and military aviation experience to provide predictive maintenance capabilities. By monitoring the health and performance of the aircraft’s systems in real time, the Health Awareness System can identify potential failures before they occur, thereby improving mission readiness and reducing maintenance costs. GE reports that similar systems have already saved millions of dollars and contributed significantly to sustained operational availability across other aircraft fleets.

The FLRAA program is not just about replacing an aircraft — it represents a shift in how the Army plans to operate in future conflicts. In a world where speed, range, survivability, and adaptability are paramount, FLRAA will allow U.S. forces to deploy troops and equipment more quickly, operate from longer distances, and maintain a technological edge over near-peer adversaries. It also serves as a technological foundation for the broader Future Vertical Lift ecosystem, which includes other programs like the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) and unmanned aerial systems, all designed to work in concert on the future battlefield.

With GE Aerospace and Bell Textron continuing development under the EMD phase, the U.S. Army is moving one step closer to fielding a revolutionary capability that could redefine vertical lift operations for decades to come.