On Oct 8, 2:02 pm, "David E. Powell"

I trust you are feeling better, hope everything is going good for you.
I won't ask any no-no stuff, but did things generally go well there? I
know that in things like choppers there have been suprising advances
in the past 20 or so years in materials, not just ones for airframe
strength and less weight, but in strength. I'm wondering if that plays
in. Not just in the shafts themselves but in the wings around them,
how things are layered (Like the protected cruisrer concept maybe?)
etc.

I won't ask what those long driveshafts are made of, I'm guessing the
main worry would be the areas where they gear into things, and I won't
push too much on that if you don't want to really get into it.

I won't violate my reading-out So no details.
The generic answer is yes. Many of those upgrades to the old helos
is the same technology that was available or actually developed in
conjunction with the V-22.
In some cases with Live-Fire tests the manufacture comes to the test
confident in what the results will be. It doesn't take long for them
to realize they were optimistic. But by congressional mandate they
must pass the LFT&E program. So they keep coming back until the
components/structure/engines etc. pass the requirements.
As to your (chopper) Helo comment. We were testing an upgrade to
the XX platform and shot a certain gearbox. The 'cap' came off, all
the lubricant and the one of a pair of bearings was expelled from the
housing. The Helo continued to hover for 30 minutes. The pilots
watching the test were amazed and one commented that with a hit lke
that he would have "set her down immediately and resolved himself to
being captured." Yet here was hands-on proof he could have flown for
30 minutes to hopefully less-hostile territory.
Feeling better from what?

BB

I guess everybody has some mountain to climb.
It's just fate whether you live in Kansas or Tibet...