Free Republic

The oddest-looking member of the Edwards Air Force Base test fleet is about to leave after successfully completing its test and evaluation program. The CV-22 Osprey is a tilt-rotor aircraft, a cross between a helicopter and a fixed-wing airplane. The hybrid aircraft is in a class by itself, combining the small-field landing and hovering capabilities of a helicopter with the speed and distance of an airplane. "At this point the CV-22 program is graduating from the test and evaluation phase to the operational test phase," Steve Sisterman, director of the integrated test team, said Wednesday, as the CV-22 made one...

CV-22: Virginia’s Blue Ridge Is Venue For Final Sign-Off Of Terrain Flight Capability. Winchester, Va., Residents of this rural town - with the most northern airport in Virginia - woke to see a USAF CV-22 Osprey overhead, returning from a foray into the nearby Blue Ridge mountains before dawn. A joint USAF/Boeing team is here to conduct ‘live’ instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) flights of the aircraft’s terrain following/terrain avoidance (TF/TA) radar system prior to completing development ready for operational use. The crew tells rotorhub the emphasis in this series of flights is low-speed work: high speed flights - also in...