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OSPREY REACHES 500 FLIGHT HOURS

NAVAIR News Release

Press Release Number: E200306051

Release Date: 6/5/2003

by Ward Carroll, NAVAIR (V-22) Public Affairs Officer

Osprey No. 7 pushed the V-22 Integrated Test Team over the 500-flight hour milestone while conducting a test flight out of Edwards Air Force Base on May 30, a year and a day after the program returned to flight.

"We've averaged more than 40 flight hours a month in the past year," said Lt. Col. Kevin Gross, the ITT's chief government test pilot. "Reaching the 500-hour milestone in a single year is the result of a sound plan carried out by dedicated professionals."

The 500-flight hour achievement comes on the heels of a very successful ruling on the V-22 test program by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisitions, Technology, and Logistics. In a recent Acquisition Decision Memorandum the undersecretary writes that "the flight testing has demonstrated {the V-22 has} combat maneuvering superior to helicopters; acceptable handling qualities in low speed flight; and dynamic shipboard compatibility" among other performance attributes that satisfy "the threshold levels for all of its key performance parameters and reliability and maintainability metrics." The undersecretary further directs cognizant authorities to make recommendations and take actions that "reflect a more success oriented program."

In another memorandum the undersecretary compliments the V-22 team for "paving the way for the eventual fielding of this much needed capability to the warfighter." He goes on to state "the Department of Defense is sincerely grateful."

The V-22 Team garnered even more plaudits two weeks later when it received the third annual NAVAIR Commander's Award for Special Achievement. In the citation for the award Vice Adm. Dyer, the NAVAIR Commander, cites "a complete turnaround of the V-22 Tilt-rotor program" and labels the V-22 Joint Program Office "a benchmark for multi-disciplined joint service, joint government, and industry co-located Integrated Program Teams."

Col. Dan Schultz, the V-22 Joint Program Manager, said, "I am proud of the entire team's accomplishments as we continue to execute a safe and methodical flight program. From Bell-Boeing that has built a reliable airplane to Rolls-Royce that has produced the Liberty engine to all the members of Team Osprey as well as the government side of the house, this program has had a great twelve months."

But all of this success and recognition has not slowed the pace of the Osprey program. In the coming weeks the ITT will be conducting developmental testing on the V-22's navigational systems and tactical sensors. The team will also be doing "pitch up with sideslip" flights to further understand how the aircraft performs and how the flight control laws might be modified to give the aircraft the optimal characteristics in that regime. In addition to executing the test plan, the team will also be busy training a new cadre of developmental and operational test pilots for both the MV (USMC) and CV (SOCOM) variants of the Osprey.

"We've got a busy summer ahead of us," said Lt. Col. Gross, "but as this year has shown, that's the sort of environment the V-22 team thrives in."