US chooses Bell Textron to build military aircraft that do not need runways

The US Department of Defense has selected Bell Textron for phase 2 of the SPRINT technology project to land aircraft on independent runways at high speed, said a spokesman for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

SPRINT (Speed and Runway Independent Technologies) under DARPA, is tasked with creating a multi-role jet aircraft.

The shape of the Bell super plane that the US Department of Defense assigned to develop. Photo: Bell Textron

One of the unique features of this aircraft is that it uses jet engines that can be folded and rotated for vertical takeoff and landing. However, unlike a previously developed Bell V-280 model.

DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) requires this aircraft to have a speed of 750-850 km/h. In addition, it can also use 2 modes with/without a pilot in parallel.

Phase 2 of the project is mainly to select a technology company with the capacity to design, manufacture and ground test. The agency hopes to complete a demonstrator aircraft by 2027 and then enter flight testing in 2028.

According to newly approved budget documents, DARPA is requesting $55.2 million for the program in fiscal year 2026.

“Bell is honored to be selected for the next phase of DARPA’s SPRINT program and is excited to demonstrate an entirely new aircraft with the first-of-its-kind stop/fold technology,” said Jason Hurst, Bell’s executive vice president of engineering.

Project SPRINT, jointly run by DARPA and the US Special Operations Command, envisions an X-plane that can take off and land vertically, fly at speeds of more than 500 mph and “hover over complex terrain or unsealed runways,” according to DARPA.

The agency said it hopes to validate the basic technology, which can then be applied to aircraft of various sizes and designs. The first phase of the program involved competitors Northrop Grumman and Piasecki Aircraft Corp, along with Aurora and Bell. The latter two were selected to advance to Phase 1B of the program last year.

The X-plane can take off and land vertically, flying at speeds of more than 800 km/h.

Aurora, a subsidiary of Boeing, designed a high-lift, low-drag X-plane propeller aircraft to allow a combination of airspeed and runway independence.

Tests conducted during Phase 1 of the SPRINT program confirmed the feasibility of the design and analytical estimates of aircraft performance.

As part of its risk mitigation efforts for SPRINT, Bell said it demonstrated its folding rotor technology, integrated propulsion system and flight control technology at Holloman Air Force Base and conducted wind tunnel testing at the National Institute for Aeronautical Research at Wichita State University.

Bell's X-plane "stop/fold" technology features tiltable flexible engines that can be used for hovering as well as vertical takeoff and landing, which can then be stowed to reduce drag. According to The Warzone, the jet engine would then provide forward thrust for higher speeds.

The company has previously touted its X-plane as an unmanned system capable of performing maritime missions, hoping to become an asset to the US military in harsh environments like the Indo- Pacific , which lack military-grade runways.

In addition to the SPRINT program, Bell is also working on other next-generation aircraft designs, such as the Army's V-280 Valor, which the company was selected to build for the Future Long Range Assault Aircraft program. The Army is currently working to accelerate FLRAA.