Bell Textron and Boeing have delivered their 400th V-22 Osprey tiltrotor to the U.S. Department of Defense. The aircraft, a CV-22 variant, went to the U.S. Air Force Special Operations command. According to Boeing, Osprey deliveries are currently being made under a $5 billion multiyear procurement contract that includes aircraft for the U.S. Marines, Air Force and Navy, along with the airframe’s first international customer, Japan.
“It’s been over 20 years since the first production V-22 was delivered, and we are proud to reach another milestone in our 400th delivery,” said program manager for the V-22 Joint Program Office (PMA-275) Marine Corps Col. Matthew Kelly. “V-22s continue to be in high demand, protecting our country and our allies around the world through combat operations, international training partnerships and humanitarian missions.”
The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey flew for the first time in 1989 and the first production model was delivered in May 1999. The U.S. Marine Corp MV-22B variant entered service in 2007 followed by the Air Force’s CV-22B model in 2009. The latest variant—the CMV-22B designed for the U.S. Navy as a replacement for the C-2A Greyhound—completed its first flight in January. As previously reported by AVweb, the Osprey fleet marked its 500,000-flight-hour milestone last October.
