US Army adopts Robinson R66 and COCO model for Flight School Next training

The US Army is overhauling entry-level rotary-wing pilot training via the Flight School Next program, shifting to a simpler single-engine Robinson R66 fleet with modern simulators under a contractor-owned, contractor-operated model. The novelty is the institutional training concept change—prioritizing fundamentals over highly-automated trainers (UH-72A)—which could affect pilot proficiency, safety outcomes, and training throughput/costs at scale.