Originally Posted by
Jack Carson
One only has to look at the long and troubled Canadian Cormorant development as an example.
The CH-148 (S-92 Mil) and the NH90 somewhat share the same pains: Too much tech for too little gain. It looked interesting on paper but reality caught up on them. A bit similar like the full carbon wonder airliners (A350 +787). The more the manufacturers learned, the heavier they got. At the end both were fighting to keep the promises that were based on the hopes of weight and performance gains by composite miracles that didn't fully materialise. Same witrh NH-90 and S-92. The promises of tech led the manufacturers to offer endless variants and features which differentiated them from Legacy Aircraft (Mechanically, Rotorcraft are mostly end- developed -there is no more miracle left to uncover -cue the ACRB on Chinook Block II). The complexity finally overwhelmed the manufacturers.