THE AW609: EXPANDING THE VERTICAL AVIATION FLEET continued Aircraft 1 (N609TR), which first flew in 2003, is on a run


stand in Italy to verify inspection intervals, check mean time between overhauls, and test rotor- and drive-system endurance. Aircraft 2 (N609AG) had been used for the development


Prototype No. 3,


N609PA, crosses Pennsylvania


countryside near the Philadelphia plant.


This AW609 is being used for engine- handling and


load-level survey tests. (Leonardo


Helicopters US Photo)


of new installations (such as a new pitot-static system), marketing flights, and collaborative development with Bristow of an offshore support configuration. It broke up in flight on Oct. 30, 2015, over northern Italy, killing test pilots Herb Moran and Pietro Venanzi. Te two pilots had detected roll oscillations during a maximum dive-speed test at 293 kt. Italy’s Agenzia Nazionale per la Sicurezza del Volo (National Agency for the Safety of Flight) found that, as designed, the flight control system generated yaw inputs to counteract the sideslip effects of the pilot flying’s roll input. Tis led to divergent oscillations, likely causing the right proprotor blades to strike the right-wing leading edge. Aircraft 3 is conducting engine-handling performance and load-level surveys in Philadelphia. It had been used for icing certification tests in Michigan.


Aircraft 4 is being used for mechanical-systems and


avionics testing in Italy and will conduct customer demonstrations. Aircraft 5 (N609LH), the first production AW609, has


been used for ground-based high-intensity radiated field and indirect-effects-of-lightning tests. It will participate in mission capability assessments and customer demonstrations, support the transition from development to operations, and assist with FAA type and production certificate examinations. Te Philadelphia operation has registered a sixth AW609,


whose tail number, N609LE, was issued by the FAA on Aug. 4, 2022. At HAI HELI-EXPO 2023, Sunick says he’ll be assessing


customers’ familiarity with the tiltrotor. “Like the V-22, getting folks in the airframe, flying it, showing it, demon- strating missions helps open their eyes to possibilities for their operation,” he says. Tat, adds Sunick, sparks in potential customers that


eureka moment when the promise of this exciting aircraft becomes clear.


36 ROTOR MARCH 2023


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