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test CV-22 tiltrotor aircraft will be flying over the Allegheny Mountains through the month of August as airmen from the 418th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards AFB, Calif., check out the new aircraft’s terrain-following radar during early morning fog. The 418th FTS airmen are operating from the Winchester (Virginia) Regional Airport and flying over military routes in the Allegheny Mountains. Air Force Special Operations Command has already taken delivery of some new CV-22 Ospreys for training, but it doesn’t expect to begin using the new aircraft for combat operations until 2009. The Marine Corps variant, the MV-22, is slated for use in Southwest Asia this fall.
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
