The Pentagon’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is working with the Special Operations Command on the Speed and Runway Independent Technologies, or SPRINT, program, which aims to create a new type of high-speed aircraft that doesn’t need a runway.
The proposed mysterious aircraft lacks helicopter rotors, emphasizing speed, and could be used for combat medical evacuations or aid soldiers trying to get into remote locations. The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey, which has both vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and short takeoff and landing (STOL) capabilities, has been the vehicle of choice for many US special operators and regular forces, but it has a troubled service record with 13 hull loss accidents and 51 fatalities. Despite its problems, the V-22 has filled a critical niche.A RAND Corporation report predicted that future wars might demand more aircraft that can land in places that don’t have runways, and Taiwan might already be battle-testing its own VTOL drones.
