AEROSPACETESTINGINTERNATIONAL.COMAPRIL 2015 |^71
V-22 & E-2D military trials z
T
wo US Naval Air Systems
Command programs have
reaped notable results recently.
The first carrier deployment for the
new generation E-2D Hawkeye is the
culmination of an intensive test and
evaluation program, and pioneering
weapons trials for the V-22 Osprey
look set to revise the mission set *ok?*
of the tiltrotor transport.OSPREY WEAPONS TRIALS
During a milestone series of flights in
the final quarter of 2014, a Bell Boeing
V-22 Osprey test article became the
first tiltrotor aircraft to launch forward-
firing weapons.
The successful demonstration of the
Osprey’s forward-firing capability took
place in November 2014 during an
exercise at the US Army Proving
Ground range in Yuma, Arizona, and
was revealed by Bell Helicopter on
December 8.“The forward-firing demonstration
was a great success,” says Vince Tobin,
vice president and program manager
for the V-22 at Bell Helicopter. “We’ve
shown the V-22 can be armed with a
variety of forward-facing munitions,
and these can hit their targets with a
high degree of reliability.”
Bell Helicopter began initial design
work on the Osprey’s forward-fire
capability in mid-2013. The aircraft
used for the tests was a US Marine
Corps MV-22B version, BuNo 165942,
which Bell and Boeing employ for test
work. The aircraft is loaned from
Naval Air Systems Command and
wears the civilian registration
N204TR. The tests were funded
using the two companies’ research
and development budgets.
First deployed in 2007, the
V-22 has seen operational
service in Afghanistan, the
Persian Gulf and the