The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has cancelled its effort to assemble the Liberty Lifter seaborne heavy transport aircraft.
The Liberty Lifter program, supposedly halfway through its third year of progress, was terminated last June due to challenges regarding how to “blend maritime construction with aircraft certification,” according to Defense News.
Results from the initiative’s completed stages will be utilized as a stepping stone for other next-generation aircraft developed under “far more efficient construction technologies.”
“We’ve learned we can build a flying boat capable of takeoff and landing in high sea states,” DARPA Liberty Lifter Program Manager Christopher Kent told the outlet.
“The physics make sense. And we’ve learned we can do so with maritime building techniques and maritime composites. We think our findings validate the hypothesis we had going in: you can build platforms that fly significantly cheaper and at significantly more locations than we do today.”
Findings Not Wasted
In another interview, Liberty Lifter prime contractor Aurora Flight Sciences said its proprietary system used for the program will be applied in its upcoming individual projects.
“Through the Liberty Lifter program, we were able to show the viability of the design and the feasibility of novel manufacturing techniques,” Aurora stated.
“Aurora is proud of the technical advancements we made through the preliminary design of Liberty Lifter, and we expect to apply these learnings to future programs.”
DARPA in early 2023 partnered with Boeing subsidiary Aurora Flight Sciences and General Atomics for the program’s design phase.
By 2024, the agency selected and proceeded with Aurora’s pitch for simulations, associated stress testing, and formulation of new approaches and components best for the airframe.
The plane was already proven viable in real-world operations, with DARPA spending approximately $98 million on the effort.
Aurora’s Liberty Lifter System
Aurora’s Liberty Lifter pitch matched DARPA’s requirements to produce a modern aircraft the size of a C-17 Globemaster with the capability to transport equipment weighing roughly the same as an M1 Abrams main battle tank.
The proposed platform was designed to measure 53 meters (174 feet) in length, with a wingspan of 65 meters (213 feet), powered by eight turboprop engines.
Aurora envisioned a production model with a 180,000-pound (81,647-kilogram) payload capacity, able to land on sea surfaces with waves of up to 13 feet (4 meters).
It was expected to fly at speeds of about 200 knots (370 kilometers/230 miles per hour), with a range of 6,500 nautical miles (12,038 kilometers/7,480 miles), and a service ceiling of 3,048 meters (10,000 feet).
