Robinson Unmanned and Sikorsky have announced the development of the R66 TURBINETRUCK, a new autonomous cargo helicopter designed for specialized utility and resupply missions.
The platform marks the 21st aircraft to be integrated with the MATRIX autonomy system, a technology suite that has already recorded more than 1,000 flight hours across various aircraft types, from small drones to strategic transport planes. This specific collaboration combines the reliability of a proven commercial airframe with advanced unmanned flight software to serve both civil and military operators in contested or remote environments.
The R66 TURBINETRUCK is engineered specifically for internal and external cargo operations. By removing the traditional cockpit and crew stations, designers have maximized the internal volume of the fuselage. The aircraft features a dedicated cargo floor and a nose-mounted clamshell door, a configuration intended to streamline the loading and unloading of palletized freight.
Rich Benton, Vice President and General Manager of Sikorsky, said, “With every new platform we welcome into the MATRIX family, we widen the network of uncrewed systems to serve a variety of civil and military missions. We view the U-Hawk and R66 TURBINETRUCK as complementary bookends that meet emerging customer needs across defense and commercial segments, delivering seamless capability wherever the mission demands. Sikorsky’s MATRIX autonomy suite is rapidly becoming the industry standard for safe, reliable and repeatable autonomy for those missions.”
The system utilizes a modular open architecture, allowing operators to swap mission software and reconfigure the aircraft for different roles, such as disaster relief or contested logistics. Operations are managed via a tablet interface where the user inputs specific goals. The autonomy system then generates a flight plan and utilizes a suite of cameras, sensors, and algorithms to navigate to the destination without human intervention.
David Smith, President and CEO of Robinson Helicopter Company, commented, “This collaboration with Sikorsky allows us to extend the reach of the R66 into new mission-sets, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to building scalable, integrated unmanned systems. We’ve taken years of flight-proven maturity and together we have optimized it for the future of autonomy. The R66 TURBINETRUCK offers an affordable and attritable custom cargo architecture designed for one thing: getting critical assets into the field autonomously and reliably.”
Because the TURBINETRUCK is built on an established commercial airframe, it benefits from a lower acquisition cost and a ready supply of replaceable components. This approach is intended to reduce the total cost of ownership and financial risk for organizations requiring repeatable autonomous logistics. The aircraft is positioned as a peer to Sikorsky’s fully autonomous S-70UAS U-Hawk, providing a scalable range of unmanned aerial solutions.
