The European Partnerships Program aims to strengthen the institute's activities under the Clean Sky 2 Joint Undertaking.
The RACER (Rapid And Cost-Effective Rotorcraft) Project is part of the IADP (Innovative Aircraft Demonstrator Platform) Fast RotorCraft within the European program Clean Sky 2. Fast RotorCraft aims to develop a new VTOL formula in order to cover the niche related to the different operating capabilities of conventional helicopters and airplanes in terms of mobility.
RACER is the first flight demonstrator in a joint European research project, a flagship in Europe. The project is developed under the coordination of Airbus Helicopters Group in a European partnership. Within the RACER community, INCAS, as the leader of the Romanian Consortium (RoC), is responsible for Airframe Advanced Design and ROMAERO – for the manufacturing and assembly of the main fuselage, as well as the test specimens of MGB Deck, Stub Wing, Fuel Test Rig and Fuel Drop. This project will be developed up to TRL 6 (flight tests).
The focus is on the assessment of key performance objectives, as well as speed, handling, stability and aerodynamics. Furthermore, the project will validate the aircraft’s ability to perform potential missions where increased speed and efficiency would bring significant added value, such as emergency medical services (EMS), search and rescue (SAR) and private transportation. The in-flight testing phase will also provide the improvement of the of low-noise flight procedures, unique to the RACER demonstration formula.