AW609 tiltrotor program sets major milestone with first production aircraft’s maiden flight

The world’s first multirole tiltrotor program, designed to redefine a range of commercial and public services, set a major milestone with the maiden flight of the first AW609 production aircraft. This aircraft introduces unprecedented capabilities under a dedicated “powered lift category” civil certification now under development. Designated AC5, the aircraft took to the air at Leonardo’s Philadelphia-based site on Oct. 13, performing as expected the initial in-flight evaluation of systems and general handling.