Boeing’s first production MH-139 Grey Wolf helicopter has been fully assembled and is now in flight testing at Leonardo Helicopters in Philadelphia, the company announced.
The milestone puts the aircraft on track for delivery to the U.S. Air Force in 2024, Boeing said.
“After testing, we’ll deliver the [MH-139] to the U.S. Air Force later this year,” Boeing said recently in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The helicopters are set to replace the U.S. Air Force’s aging fleet of Bell UH-1N Hueys that perform missions such as off-base nuclear weapons convoy surveillance and routine missile site support. The service has operated the military variant of the Bell 212 since 1970.
Boeing is the prime contractor for the MH-139A, which will be built by OEM Leonardo at its facility in Philadelphia. After final assembly, Boeing will then make modifications and install all needed military equipment.
Boeing delivered the last of six MH-139A test helicopters to the Air Force in November, marking the transition into low rate initial production.
