Guy Norris/CHINA LAKE
Operational evaluation (Opeval) of the Bell Boeing MV-22B Osprey is moving back into high gear after Gen James Jones, Commandant of the US Marine Corps, gave the all-clear this month to resume full envelope testing after a demonstration sortie at China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station, California.
Opeval was curtailed after the fatal crash of an initial production aircraft at Marana, Arizona, on 8 April. Despite the accident, the USMC says Opeval is due to be completed roughly on schedule in mid-July. Preparations have started to form the first operational MV-22 unit at MCAS New River, North Carolina, early next year. The full report into the Marana crash is due to be published by the end of July.
A test aircraft at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Maryland, is being dedicated to evaluate the vortex ring/power settling phenomenon which is believed to have caused the accident. The aircraft itself appears to have been exonerated. Jones says: "There's not a shred of evidence to indicate the aircraft is not operating mechanically as we'd expect it to operate".
The USMC hints that revised training and handling requirements could emerge from the enquiry, which is expected to recommend procedures to avoid the vortex ring condition becoming established, and ways to escape it.
To make up for the loss of the aircraft, the Opeval MV-22 multi-service operational test team (MOTT) at China Lake has taken delivery of the fifth low-rate initial production aircraft from MCAS New River.
The Opeval will be completed with more passenger-carrying missions before the MOTT completes its report on the MV-22's suitability for operational use.
Source: Flight International
