Leonardo labours to bring AW609 flight testing back on track

摘要

Leonardo's helicopter division admits the certification timeline for its AW609 civil tiltrotor has slipped slightly as a result of last October's fatal crash involving the second flight-test prototype. However, it intends to return the type to flight "in a matter of weeks" and will operate it both airplane and helicopter modes. Two flight-test articles remain following the loss of the second prototype (N609AG) on 30 October 2015: PT1 in the USA and PT3 in Italy. However, with the test fleet grounded by the company in the wake of the crash, the certification target has now slipped, says divisional chief Daniele Romiti.