Boeing Sets Up New Facility for V-22 Tiltrotor Aircraft Assembly

Boeing has established a new facility to build fuselages for V-22 Osprey Tiltrotor aircraft and modernize the MV-22 fleet, by transforming a mothballed building near Philadelphia.

“Boeing’s $115 million investment supports US and international demand for the V-22. We started this project two years ago in a mothballed building. Now, it is a manufacturing centre for the only in-service tiltrotor aircraft in the world,” said David Koopersmith, vice president and general manager, Boeing Vertical Lift.

The new 350,000-square-foot factory will be home to the Common Configuration – Readiness and Modernization (CC-RAM) program that standardizes the Marine Corps Osprey fleet by upgrading previously built aircraft to the new Block C configuration. The factory will also house fuselage production for Navy, Air Force, Marines, and international Osprey customers.

The V-22 Osprey is a multi-mission, tiltrotor military aircraft jointly developed by Bell helicopters and Boeing after the failure of Operation eagle claw during the Iran Hostage crisis in 1980. It is designed with both vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL), and short takeoff and landing (STOL) capabilities after a requirement for a new long range, High speed, Vertical take off aircraft was expressed.