Israelis Evaluate Osprey

The Israeli air force undertook evaluations of the MV-22 Osprey on a 10-day visit to MCAS New River, N.C. While there is no “procurement process on the table” as yet, the IAF is “looking at the aircraft, trying to understand how the Osprey can contribute to our operational requirements,” explained IAF Lt. Col. Nimrod Golan, who led the evaluation team during the June 13-23 visit. After an orientation on the V-22 in May, Golan and IAF Lt. Col. Avi Carmeli returned to New River with a seven-man test team to conduct a “variety of flights in order to operationally evaluate the aircraft,” noted Golan. Following simulator training, the experienced IAF team put the aircraft through a rigorous regime of combat and confined space landings, low-altitude and formation flight, as well as night and air-to-air refueling operations with a KC-130J tanker. (New River release)