Behind the scenes of the Air Force CV-22 entering intial operational test and evaluation

  • Published
  • By Laura McGowan
  • 88 ABW Public Affairs
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  The CV-22s operated by the Air Force have successfully completed their Operational Test Readiness Review, which is a program review, and three have recently entered the six-month testing phase called initial operational test and evaluation at the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center's Detachment 5 at Edwards AFB, Calif.

While Det. 5 will oversees the IOT&E, to get this very sophisticated tiltrotor aircraft to the warfighter involves the cooperation of several commands, services, and bases.

The 665th Aeronautical Systems Squadron located at Naval Air Station at Patuxent River, Md., is part of the Aeronautical Systems Center's 303rd Reconnaissance Systems Wing here, and the CV-22 is managed by the Navy V-22 Joint Program Office at PAX River with the Navy in the lead. However, Air Force Col. Tarek Abboushi, is the commander of the 665th AESG and program lead. The 665th AESG is responsible for research, development, testing and evaluation, and acquisition as part of the joint program office.

"A lot of different units and organizations have been working together toward the common goal of getting this aircraft to the warfighter, said Col. Abboushi. "There is truly a joint community of military and civilian professionals from around the country supporting the CV-22 program. The Osprey is the product of a great team effort involving the Air Force, Marine Corps, Navy and Special Operations Command," he said.

In March 2006, the Commander of the Aeronautical Systems Center, Lt. Gen. John L. "Jack" Hudson, was on hand to accept the keys from Bell Boeing for the first combat configured CV-22 Osprey at the Bell manufacturing facility in Amarillo, Texas.

He said that it was an honor to be there for that historic milestone in aviation history. "When our nation chooses to deploy forces into combat, we do our best to send them well-equipped and well-trained," said Lt. Gen. Hudson.

Three aircraft are assigned to the Air Force's first CV-22 combat squadron, the 8th Special Operations Squadron at Hurlburt Field, Fla. Their primary mission is to insert, extract, and resupply unconventional warfare forces inside hostile territory. They also fly test missions.

The Air Force plans to purchase 50 CV-22s for its special operations mission by FY 2017. The Osprey provides twice the speed, up to five times the range and significantly enhanced survivability over other conventional rotary wing platforms, and these were the first ones built upon the Block B baseline configuration. Every CV-22 that came before these were built for test or training, but these aircraft were built for training and combat.

"AFOTEC's involvement in the V-22 test program is important because we are the unbiased voice providing information on the aircraft and where it stands in regard to meeting the requirements of the capabilities production document,: said Lt. Col. Michael Hargis, AFOTEC's CV-22 program test director.

"It is critical that we translate what we evaluate into terms acquisition decision makers and the warfighter can understand and use in making decisions to field the CV-22, whether to buy more or less, and exactly what the system does for the warfighter when employed," he said.

Air Force Special Operations Command pursued the CV-22 to fill a void in the long-range insertion and extraction of special operation forces in politically denied territories in any climate or weather condition. The aircraft's ability to hover, land and takeoff vertically gives it versatility and flexibility to the special operations mission that has never existed in long-range missions.

The 71st Special Operations Squadron at Kirtland AFB, N.M., provides combat ready CV-22 aircrews to Air Force Special Operations Command. They utilize four of the seven type aircraft currently in the Air Force inventory for training purposes.

Air Force Capt. Paul Alexander, CV-22 branch chief with the 1st Special Operations Group at Hurlburt Field, has vast experience flying helos (24 years combined Army and Air Force) with the Army and Air Force. He left the Army to become a CV-22 pilot.

He said, "I believe that this capability is long overdue and will truly fill a void in Special Operations Aviation that absolutely cannot be filled by any other aircraft in the world," he said. When asked what the CV-22 means for the Air Force, he said, "In my opinion, it means that the world's greatest Air Force has just added another extremely advanced aircraft and unsurpassed capability to the United States military arsenal."

The CV-22's increased fuel capacity, compared to a helicopter, reduces the need for mid-air refueling. Additionally, reducing the number of stages in a strike plan means fewer aircraft are needed for support.

Col. Abboushi said, "The CV-22 delivers a capability only a tiltrotor can provide. Our Special Operations forces are going to do great work with the Osprey, and we're working to ensure the aircraft they get will perform up to their high standards." 

(Some material included in this article is from an article written by Katherine C. Gandara, Chief AFOTEC/PA and contributions from Jamie Darcy, NAVAIR/PA)