Bell-Boeing receive $10.4 billion US DoD contract for 167 Osprey tilt rotor aircraft

The Bell-Boeing programme office has announced that the US Department of Defense has awarded a $10.4 billion, five year multi-year procurement (MYP) contract to deliver 167 V-22 Osprey tilt rotor aircraft.

The five-year contract includes 26 CV-22 aircraft for the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) and 141 MV-22 aircraft for the US Marine Corps. The contract includes an option for additional aircraft.

Bell-Boeing is a strategic alliance between Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. company and The Boeing Company.

The Osprey is the world's first production tilt rotor aircraft, designed from the ground up to meet the needs of all four US armed services.

The Bell-Boeing program office recently celebrated the production of the 100th V-22.

"The Multi-Year Procurement sets a strong positive course for the V-22 Osprey program,'' said Gene Cunningham, vice president of the Bell Boeing Program Office in Amarillo. "The Government and industry teams have worked very hard to reach this agreement. The MYP contract allows the industry team to stabilize our production plans, creates savings for the taxpayer, and increases the number of aircraft being produced for the war-fighter.''