Lockheed Martin’s Sikorsky division has unveiled the S-70UAS “U-Hawk,” a fully autonomous variant of the legendary UH-60L Black Hawk helicopter, marking a major leap in the evolution of rotary-wing autonomy. The new aircraft has been engineered to expand the Black Hawk’s operational versatility, enabling uncrewed missions across logistics, reconnaissance, and long-range support.
Developed in an impressive 10-month timeframe, the U-Hawk features a redesigned airframe that offers 25 percent more internal space compared to the standard UH-60L. The traditional cockpit has been replaced by a set of actuated clamshell doors and a rear loading ramp, allowing faster cargo handling and easier accommodation of larger payloads or modular mission equipment.
At the core of the U-Hawk’s innovation is Sikorsky’s third-generation fly-by-wire flight control system, seamlessly integrated with the company’s MATRIX autonomy suite. Together, these technologies enable fully autonomous flight operations—including takeoff, navigation, mission execution, and landing—without the need for onboard pilots.
The U-Hawk is designed for autonomous logistics operations, drone deployment, and extended-endurance missions that would otherwise require significant human and fuel resources. Sikorsky emphasized that this advancement not only enhances mission efficiency but also reduces risk to personnel by allowing the aircraft to perform high-risk or long-duration operations entirely autonomously.
