PREFLIGHT TRAINING NEWS AND NOTES PART HELICOPTER, PART AIRPLANE. Once you've seen a V-22 Osprey, you might wonder exactly what type of aircraft it is-and for good reason. The FAA has designated the Osprey as a powered-lift aircraft-a category all its own. It's a hybrid of sorts-a heavy-lift helicopter merged with a turboprop airplane. The huge propellers are called proprotors. The wings are fixed, but engine nacelles on the wing tips rotate in unison from horizontal to vertical. The Osprey can transition from a helicopter to an airplane in as little as 16 seconds. WHAT: A V-22 Osprey is refueled before a night mission. WHERE: Central Iraq PHOTOGRAPHER: MCC Joe Kane, USN 12 / FLIGHTTRAINING.AOPA.ORGhttp://FLIGHTTRAINING.AOPA.ORG