Story by Cheryl Marino

As the battlefield evolves, so must the aircraft that support and protect Soldiers on the ground. The Army’s Future Long Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) aims to do just that—ushering in a new era of speed, range and adaptability. Backed by cutting-edge digital engineering, FLRAA isn’t just a new rotorcraft, it’s a leap forward in how the Army plans, flies and fights in tomorrow’s conflicts.

“It’s a game-changing capability in terms of speed and range,” said Col. Jeffrey Poquette, FLRAA project manager at Program Executive Office (PEO) for Aviation. He characterized the next-generation tiltrotor assault aircraft (designed by Bell Textron) as “twice as far, twice as fast” at the annual Association of the U.S. Army Global Force Symposium, held in Huntsville, Alabama, in March 2025. The implementation of digital engineering will be “a digital engineering pathfinder for the Army,” serving as a model for how digital engineering can be adopted and implemented by the Department of Defense (DOD) acquisition enterprise to improve efficiency, reduce costs and accelerate the development and test of capabilities. The challenge, he said, is that this is new territory, but the level of insight that the government gets into the design is unprecedented and “what we get from that is ensuring that we build the right thing.”

Gone are the days of building something, setting it aside and forgetting it. Digital engineering allows the Army to leverage the power of technology to create a design digitally and determine the impact of changes to that design prior to bending metal.

“Digital engineering isn’t magic,” said Poquette. “It’s just a really deep look in a common environment where we have a single source of truth. We never don’t know what the design is today. I can take my phone out right now and look at the design and see where we are … that’s powerful.”

Poquette said when prototypes are built and tested, often things are found that have to be fixed. Some of those fixes could be big, some could be expensive, and they inevitably will extend the timeline of the acquisition because the test program gets much longer.

“I’m not even going to say that digital engineering is faster upfront. It’s an investment in time. It’s an investment in intellectual capital. But when we build the prototypes we’re going to be so confident that anything we need to fix should be small, should not be expensive, and that we can quickly fix those prototypes, continue on with the test program and get the capability into Soldiers’ hands as soon as possible,” Poquette stated. “Together [with industry] collaboratively, we’re going to build the aircraft that meets the Army’s requirements and is truly going to change the nature of the assault aviation platform.”

FLRAA COMES TO FRUITION
The science and technology (S&T) effort behind FLRAA began in 2013 as the Joint Multi-Role Tech Demonstrator program, which was aimed at proving out a platform that could fly twice as far, twice as fast and be sized appropriately for the Army. As the S&T effort transitioned to an acquisition program, the question became how to approach the program differently and succeed.

“We went and looked at published lessons learned from various programs, not just Army, but across the DOD. We identified a theme that [the] lack of upfront systems engineering attributed to increased cost and schedule on many programs,” explained Michelle Gilbert, technical management division chief at PEO for Aviation FLRAA Project Management Office (PMO). She and her team were then tasked with developing a strategy that would ensure rigorous upfront systems engineering while supporting an accelerated program schedule beyond historical timelines. “That’s what initiated the development of our digital engineering strategy. We found that if we did some upfront investment in digital engineering, it would give us some of the tools that we needed to help support those two objectives.”

Initially, a technology demonstrator (constructed as a proof of concept) was built to demonstrate “twice as far, twice as fast” capabilities, but it was not fully compliant with all requirements. The FLRAA program is currently executing a detailed design to ensure that the FLRAA system meets all requirements (survivability, sustainability, integrated mission systems, etc.).

As part of the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase, Gilbert said, Bell Textron will build six prototype aircraft, as well as two “limited user” test aircraft—the prototypes will be used to verify that the system meets performance and airworthiness requirements and to validate operational effectiveness, suitability, safety and survivability. There are also virtual prototypes, which are like aircraft simulators that accommodate a pilot and co-pilot, with surrounding screens that emulate the view and behavior of the system itself. These virtual prototypes are used to help inform the design as well as the development of operator tactics, training and procedures.

THE DAWN OF NEW DIGITAL
Digital engineering enhances FLRAA missions by enabling faster, smarter and safer operations. This includes the use of model-based systems engineering tools like Cameo—a collaborative environment for defining, tracking and visualizing all aspects of a system through models and diagrams. Additionally, 3D models support design, manufacturing and assembly processes, streamlining development from concept to execution.

Gilbert explained that FLRAA is using model-based systems engineering to create the digital models of the systems architecture and requirements, merging them into a digital twin that defines the system, demonstrates its behavior and predicts performance. “[This is] establishing a digital thread which captures the relationship between system and program data. The digital thread provides the PMO, stakeholders and Bell [Textron] with a better understanding of the system. We are also utilizing a collaborative digital environment to enable near real-time access to this data.”

The performance models are used to emulate and simulate the performance of the FLRAA aircraft to understand the behavior and tweak flight control laws (modifications to the flight control system’s algorithms, which govern how pilot inputs translate into aircraft control surface movements).

“We can also use it to help ensure that from a user interface standpoint everything is correct and suitable before we go and actually build the system, [and] we’re doing all of this digitally,” she explained. “We have a lot of digital models that represent our system that have allowed us to reduce the risk before we go and bend metal on our prototypes.”

The digital engineering strategy, Gilbert noted, is incremental. She and her team are currently focused on using digital engineering to design and document the system during development. As the program progresses, these efforts will expand into testing, eventually incorporating sensor data from the aircraft and linking it to various enterprise sustainment tools. For now, the priority remains on building a solid digital foundation before moving into test and evaluation.

“Using our digital environment to link test data together with the system design of the aircraft can help make the verification process more efficient. It can help correlate information together, where before there wasn’t a linkage between information, and provide easier access to all supporting program data,” Gilbert said. “For our stakeholders who are trying to qualify our system, that’s very helpful. And then our digital engineering efforts will expand beyond that to support sustainment. Conceptually, every single aircraft in the field could have its own digital representation.”

Gilbert noted that one outcome they’ve already encountered from using the digital tools is that it forces both Bell and the U.S. government “to have a deeper understanding of the system and how onboard systems interact with each other.”

Additionally, the digital tools have enabled the team to create linkages to all of the data. Before this, Gilbert explained, “we were dealing with siloed pieces of information, so you weren’t able to make those correlations. By utilizing these tools, we’re finding things like architecture concerns that we may not have found before, just because now it’s all connected and it’s easier for us to consume and assess if the design meets our objectives.”

Crews also benefit from immersive virtual training, accelerating readiness for unfamiliar or high-risk scenarios. This makes FLRAA more agile, reliable and adaptable to the demands of future battlefields.

“We have a virtual reality [VR] capability that’s here in our office and it’s updated regularly to reflect the system under design,” Gilbert said. “We have monitors set up; we have the VR headsets. It doesn’t take a lot of infrastructure and that capability is there for us to utilize whenever we want it. This is truly a revolutionary capability that informs engineers or logisticians and any stakeholders who need to understand the system better.”

During system design, acquisition engineers may not fully grasp design specifics, such as how the hydraulic system will fit into the system, Gilbert said. “It doesn’t exist yet in physical form, but we are able to go in, put on a virtual reality headset and they can see exactly where it is in the current design. Our engineers or maintainers can look at it and say, ‘I’m never going to be able to maintain that system with the way it is now.’ We’re able to catch things like that earlier and influence a design change.”

GETTING THE MOSA FOR YOUR MONEY
While digital engineering provides the tools to design, simulate and evolve systems faster, a Modular Open Systems Approach, or MOSA, ensures those systems are built in a way that allows rapid, flexible upgrades.

According to Gilbert, the MOSA is an approach to achieving certain objectives, not just through open standards but by following specific design processes to ensure the architecture supports those goals. She and her team developed an architecture framework to guide how the system should be built and analyzed to confirm it meets MOSA objectives. Examples are enabling third-party upgrades without full reliance on the prime contractor or rapidly fielding a capability update with minimal delay. The framework defines these expectations and the prime is required to comply.

“The other thing that we’re doing is we put in a requirement for an infrastructure on our aircraft that we call the digital backbone. The digital backbone is the onboard network that’s responsible for all data exchanges between different components. Any component integrated on the system must follow the defined open standards,” she said. “And what that does is it allows for easier integration by not having to update multiple systems on the aircraft when upgrading a capability.” This concept is similar to the MOSA plug-and-play concept.

MOSA offers a modular and scalable solution for aircraft upgrades, eliminating the integration complexities associated with legacy systems. This approach significantly reduces downtime and modification work by enabling the rapid installation and interchangeability of components.

“For FLRAA, we ensure we have robust processes and requirements in place to design and analyze our architecture and the onboard digital backbone. This, coupled with a robust intellectual property strategy that ensures the right level of data rights are acquired by the PMO, summarizes the FLRAA open systems approach,” she explained. “To ensure that, we do have an open architecture on our platform.”

This, she said, will make it easier and more affordable to upgrade and sustain, with the ability to do some of that sustainment on the government side or with third parties. Because of how the system is architected, there’s less reliance on the prime contractor, which can help with sustainment costs.

SOLDIER TESTING AND TIMELINES
Soldier testing and feedback are crucial when implementing new digital technology to ensure it meets real-world operational needs. Direct input from end users helps identify usability issues, improve functionality and ensure the technology enhances mission effectiveness and Soldier readiness.

For the FLRAA program, there are two ways of achieving Soldier feedback. One is through special user evaluations, or Soldier touch points, using mockups of the aircraft to ensure optimal seat configurations and whether users can egress and ingress from the aircraft safely, etc. A user evaluation in spring 2025 observed how Soldiers conduct mission planning on the system, which will impact the software requirements for mission planning.

Another Soldier touch point is through virtual prototype simulation.

“We’re using the virtual prototype to help us get user feedback that can either support changing the user interfaces, our flight control laws, etc.,” Gilbert said. “We’re planning on using the virtual prototypes as part of special user evaluations all the way through our development stage. This will support iterative user feedback through development until we have physical aircraft prototypes.”

CONCLUSION
The FLRAA program has come a long way since April 2024, when FLRAA took a hybrid approach with a preliminary design using a middle tier of acquisition pathway and developed virtual prototypes. In July 2024, at Milestone B, it transitioned to a major capability acquisition program and program of record.

“We’re going to be focused on the detailed design in the near term, but our acquisition strategy is such that we don’t wait to complete our detailed design before we begin building our prototypes. We deliberately did that when we set up our acquisition strategy so that once a subsystem reaches the appropriate level of maturity, it can immediately move into build and assembly,” Gilbert said. “Even though the design and supporting analysis may not be fully documented, we can begin building those subsystems with an informed level of risk. This helps support schedule objectives while maintaining rigor.”

Currently, the Army is scheduled to begin equipping the first Army unit in fiscal year 2030 and completing the first unit equipped in fiscal year 2031. “Our current focus is on getting the design right, which is crucial for successfully prototyping and future production,” Gilbert said. “We are building and testing prototypes to make a production decision by Milestone C, which is currently scheduled in 2028.”

“It [development] takes a few years, especially on an aviation platform because there’s a lot we have to do from an airworthiness perspective to ensure it’s safe,” Gilbert said. “We have a lot that we have to do before a Soldier can begin operating the system. That’s why using things like the virtual prototype and other things like mockups are so important to us—because it’s a way of getting them in early while we’re still proving out the airworthiness of the aircraft itself.”

For more information, go to https://www.army.mil/PEOAviation.

CHERYL MARINO provides contract support to the U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, as a writer and editor for Army AL&T magazine and TMGL, LLC. Before USAASC, she served as a technical report editor at the Combat Capabilities Development Command Center at Picatinny Arsenal for five years. She holds a B.A. in communications from Seton Hall University and has more than 25 years of writing and editing experience in both the government and private sectors.

Story by Maj. Ryan Finnegan

A HH60M Blackhawk medical evacuation helicopter of the Montana Army National Guard’s 1-189th General Support Aviation Battalion rescued three hikers from the Princess Lake area of the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness on August 17, safely transporting them to receive medical attention.

After getting a mission request for Guard assistance early Sunday morning, the aircraft departed from the Billings Army Limited Aviation Support Facility at 7:50 a.m. The hikers, suffering from hypothermia and illness, were recovered and transported to Columbus to receive further medical care. The helicopter returned to Billings by 9:20 a.m.

The crew onboard the aircraft included pilots Chief Warrant Officer 3 Zach Lundgren and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Cameron Olson, hoist operator Sgt. Sydney Stephenson, hoist rider Sgt. Justin Asher and flight medic Sgt. Patrick Northrup. Billings Fire Department Paramedic Rob Gersbach provided additional on-board medical support.

“The entirety of the rescue operation was executed seamlessly due to the dedication and level of expertise of all personnel involved,” said Northrup. “It reflects a tremendous amount of credit and pride to not only the Montana National Guard, but also the flight crews of the 1-189th and Billings Fire Department.”

This rescue marks the 5th search and rescue mission performed by Montana Army National Guard helicopters stationed in Billings this year. Since the facility in Billings began operations in January 2023, rescues have included a hunter stranded on an island in the Yellowstone River in December 2023 and a hiker who suffered a heart attack and was rescued near Albino Lake in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness in July 2024.

Story by Cameron Porter

POWIDZ, Poland – Poland’s 33rd Army Prepositioned Stocks Battalion (33rd APS Bn.) at the Powidz Army Prepositioned Stocks-2 (APS-2) worksite in Poland received some valuable training on Supply and Support Activity (SSA) operations and Global Combat Support System-Army (GCSS-Army) from a small team of U.S. Army automated logistics specialists from the Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Armored Division (1st AD CAB), recently.

Invited to the APS-2 worksite by the commander of Army Field Support Battalion-Poland (AFSBn-Poland), the 1st AD CAB Soldiers spent a couple of days with their Polish counterparts in August explaining the systems and processes used when receiving deliveries of supplies and Class 9 repair parts, said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Stephen Valentine, 1st AD CAB SSA accountable officer.

“The main focus was training them on systems and processes and GCSS-Army familiarization,” Valentine said. “The Polish service members at the APS-2 site are using the system, now. Only a few of them currently have access, but they do use the GCSS-Army system under the supervision of Army civilians.”

GCSS-Army is a web-based automated logistics system of record that focuses on property book actions and supply and logistics management operations. It serves as the Army’s property accountability and financial system of record and can manage large volumes of transactions, providing current item location updates while interfacing with the General Funds Enterprise Business System (GFEBS) for financial data tracking and feedback.

Valentine said before he and his team came out to the Powidz APS-2 worksite, he spoke with the AFSBn-Poland commander, who has mission command of the site, and the site’s accountable officer to get a clear understanding of what the training should focus on. From there, Valentine and his platoon sergeant, Staff Sgt. Javon Hines, provided that information to his team who conducted the training.

“It was train the trainer, within my team,” said Valentine. “I provided them with all the information they needed along with my guidance. The Soldiers then conducted the training, and my platoon sergeant and I provided oversight. They did a really good job.”

Valentine said the Polish service members from the 33rd APS Bn. were very receptive. The ones who spoke English well acted as translators and “were able to walk the other guys through the training as we were teaching it.”

“We would show them the process and let them go through it a couple of times to get their reps in,” said Valentine, who added that he had never visited an APS worksite before and was thoroughly impressed with the Powidz site and the team there.

The Powidz APS-2 worksite encompasses 650,000 square feet of humidity-controlled warehouse space, plus a vehicle maintenance facility and various supporting structures and houses an entire modernized armored brigade combat team’s worth of APS-2 tactical vehicles and equipment sets.

AFSBn-Poland operates under the 405th Army Field Support Brigade, which oversees four battalions in Europe. The Powidz site is one of six APS-2 worksites across the continent, with others located in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Italy.

The 405th AFSB’s APS-2 program alleviates many of the deployment requirements typically associated with sending major combat units to Europe from the U.S. By providing turn-key power projection APS-2 packages ready to employ at a moment’s notice, the 405th AFSB’s APS-2 program is a key component of U.S. Army Europe and Africa’s power projection, warfighter readiness and logistics support missions.

The 405th AFSB is the premier logistics integrator and synchronizer for U.S. European Command, enabling readiness solutions to ‘Support the Warrior’ by operationalizing U.S. Army Materiel Command capabilities and delivering readiness within the U.S. Army Europe and Africa areas of responsibility at the point of need.

The 405th AFSB is assigned to U.S. Army Sustainment Command and provides materiel enterprise support to U.S. forces throughout Europe and Africa – providing theater sustainment logistics; synchronizing acquisition, logistics and technology; and leveraging U.S. Army Materiel Command’s materiel enterprise to support joint forces. For more information on the 405th AFSB, visit the official website at www.afsbeurope.army.mil and the official Facebook site at www.facebook.com/405thAFSB.

Story by Nicholas Janeway

The U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command held a memorial ceremony to honor 27 of its team members who passed away during the year.

Maj. Gen. Lori Robinson, AMCOM commander, hosted the annual ceremony on Aug. 5 in the Bob Jones Auditorium on Redstone Arsenal, Alabama.

Those honored worked for AMCOM G-3/5, AMCOM G-8, Letterkenny Army Depot, Corpus Christi Army Depot, Aviation Logistics Center, AMCOM Combined Logistics Command and the U.S. Army Test, Measurement and Diagnostics Equipment Activity.

Robinson thanked family members, friends and coworkers who attended to honor their loved ones.
“I think one of the most important things you can give to show how much you care is your time,” she said. “I appreciate everyone for being here today.”

During the ceremony, friends and coworkers shared stories about how each honored employee impacted their lives and how much they would be missed.

“They were supervisors and leaders within the organization, and all were dedicated to the Soldiers and warfighters on whom AMCOM remains focused on a daily basis,” Robinson said. “But as much as we appreciated their professional attributes, we appreciated having each one as a teammate and a friend.”

Robinson said photos of the employees honored during the ceremony would be added to the “AMCOM Remembers” display wall outside the Bob Jones Auditorium.

“It is our vow today that their service to AMCOM, to the Army and to our nation will never be forgotten,” she said.

Employees honored at this year’s memorial:

AMCOM G-3/5:

• Alex Brock

AMCOM G-8:

• Avina Birt
• Jeffrey Jenkins

AMCOM Combined Logistics Command:

• Amy Rodriquez
• Cory Tipton

Letterkenny Army Depot:

• Paul Gottfried
• Michael W. Kline

Corpus Christi Army Depot:

• Jerry Garza
• Esequiel Ochoa
• Thomas Sutherland
• Michael Barrera Torres
• Stanley Vela
• Jack Worthington

U.S. Army Test, Measurement and Diagnostics Equipment Activity:

• Robert Mozeleski
• Othel Winslett

Aviation Logistics Center:

• Bradley Bullard
• Yolanda Dean
• Adan Fuentes
• Matthew Gallegos
• Jeff Haulk
• Joe Kilpatrick
• Gavin Mills
• Adra Pedro
• Diane Pineda
• Jean Schmittle
• Ricky Stevens
• Karen Tann

Video of the ceremony: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/972770/amcom-memorial-ceremony

Story by Staff Sgt. Hannah Tarkelly

MORRISVILLE, N.C. – U.S. Army Col. Daniel McAuliffe assumed command of the 449th Combat Aviation Brigade in place of U.S. Army Col. Benny Collins during the change of command ceremony at the 449th Combat Aviation Brigade Armory, Aug. 2nd, 2025.

“As I passed the brigade colors today, I did so with immense pride, humility, and gratitude,” Collins said.

During his time as the brigade commander, Collins exhibited remarkable leadership and an unwavering devotion to the Soldiers under his command. Collins remained steadfast and led the way as the 449th Hurricanes responded to calls for service amidst natural disasters here in the Tar Heel state.

With the passing of the guidon, McAuliffe assumed command of 5 battalions with almost 850 Guardsmen and more than 130 aircraft.

“The 449th Combat Aviation Brigade has a proud history and a vital mission for both the Nation and the state of North Carolina,” McAuliffe said. “I am incredibly proud to re-join your ranks and serve as your commander.”

McAuliffe’s military career began in 1995 when he graduated from the U.S. Military Academy and went on to graduate from Army flight training a year later. During his time in the military, McAuliffe has taken on various leadership roles and been awarded a plethora of medals to include the Bronze Star Medal for his meritorious service.

McAuliffe’s extensive experience and dedication to his fellow Guardsmen displayed a confident readiness to lead the Hurricanes.

“I am confident that we, as a team, are ready to answer the call and accomplish our mission when our Nation or the citizens of North Carolina need us to respond,” McAuliffe said.

Things are moving quickly in Army Aviation and your AAAA team is doing everything we can to support the Branch and the Army in the Chief of Staff Army’s new guidance on “Continuous Transformation.” From our event themes to the magazine editorial focus, membership outreach, and the Army Aviation Congressional Caucus, AAAA is strongly endorsing and supporting this vision.

You will notice in the just released agenda for the annual Cribbins Futures Forum, November 17-20, 2025 in Huntsville, AL, that the focus is totally on the Concept Driven Transformation phase of Continuous Transformation. We will work on specific subjects like Air Space Management, Drones/Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Artificial Intelligence, Accelerated Acquisition, Sustainment on the Contested Battlefield, Launched Effects and Mission Planning. Our intent is to spur intellectual debate on each topic so that we better understand future challenges and the best way for our branch to meet those challenges.

The actual shape of the event has changed as well to best capture feedback and input from Soldiers and Industry. Specifically, members of the Army Aviation General Officer Steering Committee (GOSC) will present a problem set in their specific mission area during their morning general session presentations.

Then, during the afternoon session, in the embedded exhibit hall theater, we will have sequential “Open Mic” sessions for one hour each addressing each problem set managed by a senior “facilitator” to elicit thoughts from the audience.

Following those discussions, each facilitator will summarize the comments, best practices and suggestions from Industry and Soldiers, and on the last day of the event, will back-brief the Army Aviation GOSC in an open session, in the same exhibit hall theater, on the potential solutions to their problem sets that were presented during their introductory briefings.

The objective is to present solutions from a broad spectrum of the Aviation Enterprise; the actual folks working on the flightlines, workshop floor, contracting officers, as well as Industry and others seeking to contribute to the Concept Driven Transformation phase of Continuous Transformation. This will posture Army Aviation to not only meet the emerging threats but provide leapfrog capabilities to maintain our nation ‘s dominance across all domains.

Our National Executive Group, led by AAAA Treasurer, MG (Ret.) Todd Royar, has seized the initiative in developing the path ahead for AAAA’s support to the Branch. Summarized, this initiative is designed to focus Cribbins on the future which is captured in Concept Driven Transformation, and the Summit more on current capabilities as we continue to transform.

I want you to know that your NEG is totally engaged and in synch with the Army Aviation GOSC as we support their initiatives to achieve the CSA’s vision to keep the U.S. Army at the leading edge of technologies, capabilities and tactics to fight and win in any potential scenario.

Be part of the process and register now for Cribbins at www.quad-a.org/25Cribbins.

Above the Best!

MG Wally Golden, U.S. Army Retired
37th President, AAAA
Wally.golden@quad-a.org

AAAA National President, MG (Ret.) Wally Golden receives a memento from Grizzly Chapter President, COL Shiloh Briggs, for being the guest speaker at the chapter-sponsored California Army National Guard Army Aviation Banquet on June 1, 2025 in Clovis, CA.

I am excited and honored to have been elected as your new AAAA National President at our annual Mission Solutions Summit in Nashville back in May. I’m also excited to share some insights with you in this, my first installment of  “The Cockpit.”

First, let me thank our outgoing President, and my friend, MG (Ret.) Walt Davis, who led AAAA so well during the last two years, establishing a cohesive team of your National Executive Group (NEG), including BG (Ret.) Tim Edens, now our Senior VP, and MG Todd Royar, our new Treasurer. It has been an honor to serve with and for Walt. I pledge to build on his many successes and work every day to represent you all, as we work through these times of change and challenge.

Congratulations to our new NEG Secretary, BG (Ret.) Ray Davis, along with our new VP Chapters, COL (Ret.) John Broam and new VP Membership, COL (Ret.) Liz Martin. My heartfelt thanks to Jan Drabczuk and Becki Chambers for their long and distinguished service to AAAA as the previous VPs for Chapters and Membership. I’m also proud to announce that MG (Ret.) Laura Yeager, former 40th Infantry Division Commanding General, has accepted a National Executive Board (NEB) Member-at-Large Position and will replace Ray Davis as Chairperson of our AAAA Army National Guard and US Army Reserve Committee.

Your AAAA NEG has been busy since the Summit in May. I was honored to attend the Grizzly Chapter Ball in June at Clovis, CA. What a great event! My thanks go out to Chapter President, Shiloh Briggs, and his entire team for their warm welcome and hospitality. Their event epitomized the AAAA pillars of networking and recognition as they provided a venue for camaraderie and fellowship while awarding many outstanding individual members and units during their event. I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and look forward to visiting many other chapters during my tenure as president.

A couple of weeks after the AAAA Summit our new National Executive Group (NEG) met for three days at the AAAA National Headquarters in Connecticut to coordinate our efforts to best serve you. We reviewed everything from our almost finalized Strategic Plan, to sponsoring UAS drone centric events, and reshaping our major events, all to make sure that AAAA is future-focused and relevant to you, the Branch, and the Army for decades to come.

If my years in uniform taught me anything, it is that change is inevitable, and that Army Aviation and our Nation always come out better, stronger and more capable in the process. All of us at AAAA are moving out smartly to better serve you in all of our four pillars of Networking, Recognition, Voice and Support as we embrace unmanned systems, autonomy, counter drone and all the realities of the emerging battlefield as we prepare for future conflict.

I guarantee that the AAAA will be there for you to provide the venues, platforms and opportunities for the entire community to come together to achieve these objectives.

The future of the U.S. Army and Army Aviation looks exciting for sure! Your AAAA leadership team looks forward to being a supporting change agent as we all continue to Support the U.S. Army Soldier and Family!

Above the Best!

MG Wally Golden, U.S. Army Retired
37th President, AAAA
Wally.golden@quad-a.org

Story by Capt. Shervon Pope

FORT BRAGG, N.C. -The “All American” DUSTOFF company executes first in-flight whole blood transfusion over Fort Bragg Apr. 30.

Charlie Company of the 3-82 General Support Aviation Battalion (GSAB), 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB) is the first active Army unit to perform an in-flight prehospital blood transfusion outside a combat zone. Also known as the Fort Bragg “All American”, DUSTOFF Charlie Company conducts medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) operations year-round to support the installation and the surrounding area. DUSTOFF is an acronym that stands for Dedicated Unhesitating Service to Our Fighting Troops and is synonymous with life-saving aeromedical evacuations.

Since the activation of the installation’s whole blood program, flight medics have been authorized to transport blood and administer transfusions during aeromedical evacuations, which significantly improves patient survivability during prehospital transport. While whole blood transfusions are commonly performed in combat zones, this is the first of its kind.

On the afternoon of April 30, 2025, the company’s operation cell received an urgent 9-line MEDEVAC request containing limited information: a critical condition patient in the vicinity of Mott Lake, N.C.

“When a 9-line drops, that becomes our number one priority”, stated Chief Warrant Officer 3 Duro, pilot-in-command. After receiving the MEDEVAC request, the crew, which included Chief Warrant Officer 3 Duro, Chief Warrant Officer 1 King, Staff Sgt. Beighley, and Cpl. Sullivan, took action.

Beighley, the flight medic, prepared vital medical supplies. With nearly eleven years of training and experience, she learned to anticipate patient needs, including in-flight blood transfusions, now possible through the whole blood program activation. Sullivan, crew chief, and King, junior pilot, readied the aircraft with pre-flight procedures and safety checks while Duro determined the flight route. With limited information and mission urgency, Duro determined that securing a suitable landing zone (LZ) required intervention from Fort Bragg military police to manage ground traffic. The crew coordinated airspace with Simmon air traffic controllers and prepared with the Womack Army Medical Center (WOMACK) providers to expedite services upon arrival.

Within minutes of the MEDEVAC request, the duty crew hurried across the hangar at Simmons Army Airfield and took flight toward Mott Lake. Although each crew member had their own unique experiences, they all shared one commonality: this mission signified their first point of injury (POI) at Fort Bragg. It would also be the first time a medical evacuation included in-flight transportation and transfusion of whole blood above a military installation.

“This was my first call here and out of training as a sole provider,” said Beighley, “I was able to react accordingly and make the right decisions because I knew that I had a solid crew with me that day.”

Upon arrival, the duty crew quickly made judgments and coordinated with on-scene agencies, resulting in a safe aircraft landing. After receiving the Fort Bragg Emergency Medical Services (EMS) patient care report along with the patient, Beighley assessed
that the patient required blood authorized from the whole blood program. During the transport, she had only minutes to provide critical medical interventions to improve the patient’s outcome. Among them, Beighley executed the blood transfusion. The patient was successfully transferred to the Womack Army Medical Center for higher-level medical treatment.

King stated this MEDEVAC mission stood out among others because of intricate coordination with emergency services, supporting agencies, and crew synchronization, particularly between the flight medic and crew chief, which is essential to executing a successful
operation.

“In situations such as that call, we don’t have to ask questions. Everyone is prepared and knows what their role is,” said Sullivan.

Collaboration among the Womack Army Medical Center, Fort Bragg Range Operations Center, Fort Bragg Fire and Emergency Services, military police and Charlie Company are critical to medical evacuation success. The All American DUSTOFF is committed to enhancing patient care standards during aeromedical evacuations by consistently achieving new performance milestones.

Story by Maj. Jeffrey Windmueller

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Nicholas Demas was admiring the jagged peaks of the Swiss Alps cutting through the clouds when the radio crackled to life.

“Be advised, you are going to be intercepted by a Swiss fighter jet for training purposes,” the voice said.

Seconds later, an American-made F/A-18 Hornet appeared just 10 feet off his wingtip. Demas and his co-pilot snapped a quick photo, but the moment served as a stark reminder: this was no sightseeing trip. As an Army Reserve aviator, Demas was on a mission—flying halfway around the world to support Exercise Balikatan 2025, the 40th iteration of the joint and combined U.S.-Philippine military exercise in the South Pacific.

In doing so, Demas accomplished a rare feat: circumnavigating the globe in a twin-turboprop aircraft, the C-12 Huron.

. . .

Today, global travel is common. But circumnavigating the Earth in a military turboprop aircraft still requires meticulous planning and tremendous skill.

“Fuel management is one of the biggest concerns,” Demas said. “If weather happens, where can I go, and what can I do?”

Flying stateside, a storm over Dallas might just mean diverting to Oklahoma City. But overseas, in unfamiliar airspace, with limited fuel and no backup airfields, every leg had to be planned with precision.

Five months before takeoff, Demas and fellow pilots from Charlie Company, 6-52nd Theater Aviation Battalion began building the plan. The environment, extreme distances, and diplomatic hurdles of flying a military aircraft through foreign airspace demanded careful consideration.

“Part of my planning for this whole trip is APACS clearances,” Demas explained, referencing the DoD’s Aircraft and Personnel Automated Clearance System. “Every country’s approval includes specific airports. Landing at a non-approved location could cause serious issues.”

Based on the Beechcraft Super King Air 200, the Army’s C-12 is primarily used to transport distinguished visitors (DVs). With internal fuel tanks installed for the trip, Demas’s aircraft could stay airborne for over six hours at a time—closer to eight with careful fuel management.

Each landing was calculated to ensure at least 800–1,000 pounds of fuel remained, in case the aircraft needed to circle or divert due to emergencies or unfriendly airspace. These limitations, both mechanical and diplomatic, made one thing clear: the flight needed to continue eastward the entire way.

“We wouldn’t have had the fuel to fly westward, against the winds, to Alaska and then Japan,” said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Brittney Hobt, who joined the mission in the Philippines. “You’d end up making an unscheduled stop in the ocean.”

That added fuel capacity proved vital more than once.

Approaching Phuket, Thailand, Demas and Chief Warrant Officer 4 John Kittinger encountered a lightning storm so intense it seemed unreal.

“It was the craziest lightning storm I had ever seen,” Demas said.
Placed into a holding pattern at 15,000 feet, the crew watched as international airliners queued up behind them.

“We were the paper airplane in the sky, trying to land between these major airlines,” he said. When one jet was told it was “No. 20” in line, Demas knew he had to act quickly and precisely.

By then, Demas had logged 44 flight hours across 11 time zones—and was still days away from his exercise destination.

. . .

At Balikatan 2025, Army Reserve aviators flew across the Philippines supporting joint operations with the Philippine military and other partner nations, including Japan and Australia.

Operating the nimble C-12 allowed the Army Reserve team to move personnel and senior leaders across the islands, freeing up larger aircraft for logistics and combat support missions.

“They were standard missions, for the most part,” said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Donny Distler, who joined Demas in the Philippines. “But the collaboration between the four branches—it was seamless. It felt like we’d worked together for years.”

Still, there were challenges. In a non-FAA environment, navigating language barriers, different air traffic control procedures, and weather made each flight a test of skill.

“ATC was like the Wild West,” Distler said.

Controllers sometimes asked unexpected questions like, “Who are you and what’s your intention?”—prompting a moment of confusion before Demas answered: “To land?”

The runways themselves often added to the difficulty. Narrow, unlit strips—with tailwinds and monsoon rains—meant visual perception was easily distorted.

The aviators also supported training scenarios beyond transport.

In one exercise, Demas, Hobt, and Kittinger played roles in a simulated cockpit emergency, helping test and train local first responders.

“There were (simulated) smoke and fumes in the cockpit,” Demas said. “That triggered the emergency crews.”

While Hobt was treated for smoke inhalation and Kittinger for a simulated heart attack, Demas played a disoriented senior leader.

“I was told to be confused, concerned, and unaware of what was going on,” he said. “They had to control me and guide me to safety.”

. . .

When Balikatan concluded, Demas and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Ryan Rennecker launched from Misawa, Japan, into complete darkness—no stars, no visible clouds. Just the black of the sky above the Pacific.

Three hours later, the sun rose over the Aleutians, eventually giving light to steam rising from an active volcano on Great Sitkin Island.

“It was the most spectacular sunrise I’ve ever seen,” Demas said. “You could still see the stars behind you, but ahead, this bright edge of sunlight was cutting across the sky.”

After nearly 25 years in uniform, Demas knew this would likely be his final long-range mission.

From the deserts of Qatar to the atolls of the Maldives, from snowdrifts in Canada to the extreme heat of the Philippines, the globe-spanning mission tested every skill he had. Mechanical delays, diplomatic clearance hiccups, and weather all added to the challenge. But the payoff was returning home—over Memorial Day weekend—just in time to see his daughter’s softball game.

“All told, I flew more than 20,000 miles and 90 hours,” Demas said. “I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity.

“To a certain extent, I just flew my mission—but when I step back and realize I flew around the world in a twin-engine turboprop… it’s insane.”

OINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. — Imagine a future where a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter pilot, mid-flight, loses consciousness, and an onboard automated system reads the pilot’s vitals and autonomously flies the aircraft back safely, even alerting a medical crew to be at the airfield ready to treat the incapacitated pilot.

A groundbreaking fusion joining autonomous flight and operational monitoring of pilots’ vital signs just made that future possibility a present-day reality recently at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia.

“This is the first time we have integrated the pilot’s health status to an autonomous flight control system,” said Carl Ott, a U.S. Army experimental test pilot with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aviation & Missile Center Technology Development Directorate.

Ott successfully flew this scenario together with co-test pilot U.S. Army Lt. Col. Greg Sievers, rotorcraft in-flight lab branch chief, James Carr, flight test engineer, and a team monitoring the mobile laboratory from the ground, integrating mission adaptive autonomy, and operator state maintaining, or OSM.

“This demonstration added in the capability of the OSM, so now if I have a pilot managing the system, he is flying, and all of a sudden gets incapacitated, he can [return to base], essentially going back to the point of origin,” Ott said.

JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Virginia – Harrison Whittels, CEO of Tiger Tech Solutions, fits an Operator State Monitoring Technology band on the arm of U.S. Army Development Command test pilot U.S. Army Lt. Col. Greg Sievers, rotorcraft in-flight lab branch chief, Joint Base Langley Eustis, Virginia, May 1, 2025. The OSM is a biomedical sensor that monitors the pilot’s physiology during a flight. (U.S. Air Force photo by Crista Mary Mack)

While the aircraft was operating, data and video from the pilot and the helicopter were live streamed and monitored in real time. Mission adaptive technology is the term used to describe the autonomous flight capabilities, and OSM manifests itself as an arm band that monitors vital signs of the pilot similarly to an EKG machine.

“Our goal is to provide a tool to save the pilot, the crew and anyone on board, whether helicopter or another aircraft. If we can prove that concept, then everyone and everything can come home,” said Harrison Whittels, CEO of Tiger Tech Solutions, the company providing the OSM technology for the experiment. Whittels and his team monitored as the integration of all the systems were tested.

The flight was the product of a cooperative research agreement with the U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Lab and Tiger Tech. While autonomous flight is something that is being tested already, this specific capability test is connecting the health and well-being of the pilots to an aircraft’s autopilot functions.

“This goes beyond flight stabilization, altitude and heading control,” said U.S. Army Col. Justin Highley, commander, DEVCOM Aviation & Missile Center Technology Development Directorate at Fort Eustis. “This technology has the further capability of connecting the status of the human flying the aircraft with the autopilot functions.”

JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Virginia – “You see this little green blob? This makes me really happy,” Rick Whittington, Chief Operations Officer, Tiger Tech Solutions, said. Whittington explained that the little green on the screen he pointed to shows the current physiological condition of the helicopter pilot who being monitored mid-flight, and that it represents the state of the pilot being monitored, despite also being mid-flight, in real time, during the in-air test of combining monitoring the pilot’s vital signs via operator state monitoring and connecting that status to autonomous flight, called Mission Adaptive Autonomy. The experiment was conducted by a combined effort including U.S. Army Technology Development Directorate and U.S. Army Aeromedical Command. (U.S. Air Force photo by Crista Mary Mack)

The directorate Highley commands develops and demonstrates new technologies for aviation.

“We have a flying laboratory, which is only flown by test pilots such as Carl (Ott), specific for experimental test pilots for research type systems, used as a learning system, where we try in a flight environment different capabilities with the autonomy,” said Highley.

DEVCOM AvMC is the Army’s primary center for developing, integrating, demonstrating and sustaining Army aviation and missile systems. DEVCOM AvMC is a part of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, a major subordinate command of the U.S. Army Futures Command.

“What we are doing here is finding ways to cope with adaptive behaviors in the cockpits and aircraft that allows them to reduce the cognitive workload on pilots,” Highley said.

“Within DEVCOM AvMC we are working on how to add autonomy to the aircraft for high risk and really dangerous missions; we are particularly looking for ways to take our conventional aircraft and make them optionally manned,” Highley said. “For really dangerous operations, if we want to pull the pilots out and let the aircraft go by itself for a mission, we need to be able to provide that option to commanders.”

Highley added, that the technology of fully automated flights is still several years away. “You can never replace a pilot,” he said. “But now we have new ways to save a pilot.”

JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Virginia – A different kind of Sikorsky UH-60 Blackhawk, the aircraft in this picture also flies autonomously and is used by U.S. Army test pilots for the U.S. Army’s Development Command Aviation Missile Center Technology Development Directorate at Fort Eustis. The autonomous flight capabilities, called Mission Adaptive Autonomy, are tested with other capabilities. “We have a flying laboratory, which is only flown by test pilots, specific for experimental tests for research type systems, used as a learning system, where we try in a flight environment different capabilities with the autonomy,” said Highley. (U.S. Air Force photo by Crista Mary Mack)

“We have some accidents in aviation, that a combat system can come in and warn the pilot it can save lives,” Highley continued. “All the modern cars nowadays have lane stabilization, so if you get too far out of the lane it shakes to let you know. We can do similar, where if it gets too far out in the danger zone or too far off your route, it can cue the pilot, have it shake the stick.”

The combination of the OSM with the autonomous flight also opens doors for additional possibilities, according to Ott. “Partnering with aeromedical research for this operator state monitoring, in addition to sending information itself, the OSM could also transmit to an aid station on the ground and there could be a medical response waiting for them, another possibility to broaden this capability,” he said. “We try to answer how to use technology to our advantage. The demonstration was small in scope but great in what the capability could look like on the future battlefield integrated with human users.”

OSM has been also recently tested in various capacities, to include monitoring Soldiers jumping out of airplanes, divers, and now with pilots.

“The future is this will be in common aircraft,” said Rick Whittington, chief operations officer, Tiger Tech Solutions. “If you can monitor your pilots, imagine how much it will assist air traffic controllers, how many lives it can save.”