Bell ARH-70 Arapaho

ARH-70 Arapaho
An ARH-70 Arapaho
General information
TypeReconnaissance armed helicopter
ManufacturerBell Helicopter
StatusCanceled
Number builtFour (prototypes)
History
First flight20 July 2006
Developed fromBell 407

The Bell ARH-70 Arapaho[1][2] was an American four-bladed, single-engine, light military helicopter designed for the United States Army's Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) program. With a crew of two and optimized for urban combat, the ARH-70 was slated to replace the Army's aging OH-58D Kiowa Warrior.

Excessive delays and growth in program costs forced its cancellation on 16 October 2008, when the Department of Defense failed to certify the program to Congress. The ARH-70 was touted as having been built with off-the-shelf technology, the airframe being based on the Bell 407 (and as such was related to the OH-58).

  1. ^ "U.S. Army Happier With ARH-70A Program". Archived from the original on 5 November 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
  2. ^ Aviation Modernization Program to Field Lakota, Modify Current Helos