The first production CV-22 built expressly for the US Air Force has been delivered to the service. The tilt-rotor CV-22 was turned over to the Air Force on Monday, Sept. 19, at CV-22 production plant in Amarillo, Texas.
The CV-22 is the U.S. Air Force Special Operations variant of the V-22 and will be used for long-range special operations missions, contingency operations, and evacuations and maritime operations.
In addition to the standard V-22 nav and comms, the CV-22 has an advanced electronic warfare suite, a multi-mode radar which permits flight at very low altitude in zero visibility, a retractable aerial refuelling probe, four radios and flight engineer seat/crew positions in the cockpit.
This CV-22 will be assigned to the 58th Special Operations Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., the schoolhouse unit for CV-22 crews, Air Force officials said.
The Air Force is already flying two CV-22s as test platforms at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Those aircraft were originally built as Marine Corps MV-22s and then retro-fitted as CV-22s.
The two versions of the aircraft have several differences. For example, the Air Force version flies with a flight engineer while the Marine Corps aircraft doesn’t have an engineer crew position.
The Air Force Special Operations Command expects to acquire 50 of the aircraft, built by Bell and Boeing, to replace its MH-53J Pave Low helicopters and take over some missions now flown by MC-130 special operations airplanes.
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Story from the
Air Force Times
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