V-22 Testing Faces Delays

Problems with gearboxes aboard the V-22 tilt-rotor aircraft built by Boeing Co. and the Bell Helicopter unit of Textron Inc. could delay the start of operational tests due to begin in mid- to late-February, a program spokesman said Tuesday.

Ward Carroll said the problem had set off cockpit warning lights six times since April 2004, including three in the last month. Such a warning requires the pilot to land as soon as possible.

As a result, program officials ordered a pause in flights of the V-22 -- which takes off like a helicopter but flies like an airplane -- to correct the gearbox issue, Carroll said.

He stressed the flight pause was not a safety decision, and no grounding bulletin had been issued.

Testing of the V-22, also known as the Osprey, resumed in May 2002 after a grounding of nearly two years that was ordered after two crashes in 2000 that killed 23 Marines.