Bell Textron Inc., a Textron Inc. company, announced the Grand Opening of its Weapon Systems Integration Lab (WSIL) in Arlington, TX. The state-of-the-art facility will aid in in the safe, rapid, and efficient integration and test of a next generation fly-by-wire aircraft and mission systems using a modular open systems approach (MOSA) for the United States Army.

"As part of our commitment to deliver advanced fly-by-wire aircraft and MOSA capabilities to our nation's warfighters, Bell is pleased to announce the opening of its latest systems integration lab,” said Ryan Ehinger, Bell’s Senior Vice President and Program Director. “This dedicated SIL supports the application, verification and validation of Bell’s innovative digital engineering approach and open architecture, playing a critical role in delivering outstanding operational performance and versatility to the warfighter.”

“We are grateful for our partnership with Bell, who has made Arlington the home of its Flight Research Center for nearly six decades now. The Arlington Economic Development Corporation’s recent strategic investment shows our city’s continued commitment to supporting innovation right here in our backyard,” Mayor Jim Ross said.

In 2021, Bell began construction of a new 47,000-square-foot facility in Arlington to house future development programs at its Flight Research Facility. The WSIL is Bell’s fifth generation System Integration Lab located at its Flight Research Center.  This latest WSIL facility supports end-to-end integration of fly-by-wire systems with state-of-the-art avionics, electrical, hydraulic, flight controls, and mission and sensor systems for multiple current and future programs, manned and unmanned.

Bell and the City of Arlington have a history spanning over 55 years. Beginning in 1967, the City of Arlington has played a major role in supporting the innovation of flight-testing for new programs at Bell’s Flight Research Center.

The WSIL is the first project funded and approved by the Arlington Economic Development Corporation (AEDC). Formed in 2021, AEDC seeks to attract and retain community partners, businesses, and workforce members to invest and make their home in Arlington.
Marty Wieder, executive director of the AEDC explained that this project will facilitate the creation of high-quality jobs that tie into the work being done in engineering, aerospace and aviation at the University of Texas at Arlington and other places.

“This serves as a great poster child for others who come knocking on the door of the corporation and want to talk about being considered for investment,” Wieder said. “It provides a great opportunity for us to hold up to others and say, 'this is the type of investment we thought was important for our very first project.' So that'll help us in being able to point back to Bell and others as this is the type of quality we want to see in Arlington, Texas.”