Airbus’s "Racer" high-speed helicopter demonstrator, developed in the frame of the European Research "Clean Sky 2" project, has reached its fast cruise speed target of 407 km/h (220 kts). On 21 June, less than two months after its first flight, the demonstrator exceeded its level speed objective of 407 km/h (220 kts) by reaching 420 km/h (227 kts) in its initial configuration. In just seven flights and about nine hours of flight testing, almost all of the flight envelope has been opened.

The flight test crew consisted of Hervé Jammayrac, Chief Flight Test Pilot, Dominique Fournier, Flight Test Engineer, and Christophe Skorlic, Test Flight Engineer. The next phase of flight testing will focus on single engine operations and finalise the flight envelope.

Optimised for a cruise speed of more than 400 km/h, the demonstrator aims to achieve the best trade-off between speed, cost-efficiency, and mission performance. It also targets a fuel consumption reduction of around 20%, compared to current generation helicopters in the same maximum take-off weight category, thanks to aerodynamic optimisation and an innovative eco-mode propulsion system. Developed with Safran Helicopter Engines, the hybrid-electrical eco-mode system allows one of the two Aneto-1X engines to be paused while in cruise flight, thus contributing to cutting CO2 emissions. The "Racer" also aims to demonstrate how its particular architecture can contribute to lowering its operational acoustic footprint.