The US Department of Defense has decided not to cancel the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey, but to take control of the programme from the US Navy. The office of the undersecretary of defence for acquisition Pete Aldridge will oversee the work.
Aldridge has allowed the USN to buy additional V-22s at a low but still undefined rate. A V-22 acquisition working group has been formed to restructure the programme and to establish technical, schedule and funding criteria.
Bell Helicopter Textron chairman and chief executive Terry Stinson says a 'Blue Ribbon' panel earlier "recommended a proper way forward to prepare the V-22 for full rate production". He says: "We are convinced and confident that tiltrotor technology is mature and safe."
Pat Finneran, Boeing general manager navy programmes, says: "We will take the necessary steps to improve the capability, reliability and maintainability of the V-22. We will make improvements that will be thoroughly tested before aircraft are delivered to the fleet. We believe the DoD and the US Congress should preserve the V-22 technology base, workforce and supplier base. We will work with the acquisition community to identify the minimum production rate that preserves this capability."
A DoD industrial assessment says Bell factories in Fort Worth and Amarillo, Texas, would probably close and the company would likely exit the military helicopter business if the V-22 programme ended. Loss of V-22 work could also force an end to the BA609 civil tiltrotor, the assessment says.
Restricting Osprey production to 11 aircraft a year would increase unit cost by $2-4 million, but the manufacture of only four a year could keep the assembly line open.
DoD analysts say slowing or terminating V-22 production will impact the Boeing Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche programme as well as the Boeing CH-47F and Bell UH-1Y/AH-1Z upgrades.
Source: Flight International
