First Flight of Piasecki ARES Tilt-Duct VTOL

First Flight of Piasecki ARES Tilt-Duct VTOL The ARES-DV Flight Module lifted off from Piasecki's West Helipad in Essington, Pennsylvania on Friday, September 6th, and achieved a sustained hover for a duration of approximately one minute before descending. Upon landing, the team attached the U.S. Army’s Mobile Multiple Mission Module (M4) to the ARES-DV Flight Module, and conducted a second successful one-minute hover, demonstrating the ability of its triplex fly-by-wire flight control system to sustain a stable hover in multiple configurations and a dynamic ground environment. ARES is a modular multi-mission tilt-duct VTOL vehicle that can be operated as an unmanned aerial system (UAS) or with an optional manned flight module. ARES is designed with a small landing footprint to enable shipboard and expeditionary operations as well as provide embedded multi-mission C4I, ISR, combat, and logistics support to small, distributed combat forces operating over extended distances and in complex terr