Boeing/Bell joint-venture plans thorough-going test programme after Osprey failures
Bell/Agusta has delayed first flight of the BA 609 civil tiltrotor to year-end so it can map out a comprehensive flight test and certification programme as Bell Boeing looks at engineering changes for the troubled military MV-22 Osprey.
The joint venture is taking a decidedly more conservative approach to testing the nine-seat BA 609 in the wake of the recent US Marine Corps MV-22 crashes. "We have to make sure we get it right and have a comprehensive test plan for the first-of-a-kind vehicle," says Don Barbour, Bell/Agusta marketing executive director.
Development of the BA 609 as result is running approximately 12 months behind its original schedule. The programme had been delayed earlier by a decision to shift production of the BA 609's fuselage from Aerostructures to Fuji Heavy Industries.
Bell/Agusta are developing an operationally suitable flight envelope for the tiltrotor, including set approach patterns and three distinct nacelle positions, to avoid the vortex ring state (VRS) or power settling that resulted in last April's fatal MV-22 crash.
Bell Boeing in the meantime has been given 90 days by the Department of Defense to report back on planned engineering changes to the MV-22 in the wake of the last crash in November. The focus is on refining the tiltrotors flight control software, realigning hydraulic pipes and developing a VRS acoustic and stick shake warning system.
"We don't believe there will be a major redesign that will effect the outer mould lines of the aircraft. We think it is all a matter of repackaging within the space we have," says Jerry Daniels Boeing Military aircraft chief executive.
The USMC surviving nine aircraft will remain grounded with the exception of 2-4 MV-22s that will be transferred to NAS Patuxent River to assist with the planned new follow-on flight testing.
Source: Flight International
