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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
Philadelphia Inquirer
October 9, 2007 First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks By Jay Price, McClatchy Newspapers BAGHDAD-- The V-22 Osprey has arrived in a combat zone for the first time. It was an epic trip for the tilt-rotor plane, one that took more than 25 years of development and cost 30 lives and $20 billion. Even the last short hop - from an aircraft carrier into Iraq - went awry, U.S. military officials said yesterday. A malfunction forced one of the 10 Ospreys that were deployed to land in Jordan on Thursday. The Marines flew parts to it from Iraq and repaired it. After it took off again Saturday, the problem recurred, and it had to turn back and land in Jordan a second time, said Maj. Jeff Pool, a U.S. military spokesman in western Iraq. The Osprey finally was repaired and arrived at Asad air base in western Iraq late Sunday afternoon. Maj. Eric Dent, an Osprey spokesman at Marine headquarters in Washington, declined to identify the problem. "The nature of the malfunction was a minor issue, but our aircrews are top-notch when it comes to safety," Dent said in an e-mail. "Rather than continue, the aircrew opted to land at a predetermined divert location and further investigate the issue." Now the Osprey is on the world stage, and the burden of proving it is safe and effective in combat lies with the North Carolina-based Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263, nicknamed the "Thunder Chickens." The unit's mission will be transporting troops and cargo in western Iraq. It will perform that mission in ways that no other military transporters have done in combat. The Osprey - which costs $110 million each, including development costs - takes off and lands like a helicopter but tilts its engines forward to fly like an airplane. It is jointly produced by the Boeing Co. in Ridley Township, Delaware County, and Bell Helicopter Textron of Fort Worth, Texas. Its arrival in Iraq is aviation history, said Bob Leder, a spokesman for the Bell-Boeing partnership. "This is a big thing - the introduction of a new type of aircraft into combat, totally different from the way things have been done before," he said. Leder said the company believed that the Osprey and the squadron would do well but that years of criticism and heavy media attention were putting huge pressure on the unit to perform. The aircraft's problems have generated a gallery of vocal detractors, who say that not only is it too expensive and too dangerous but that it performs poorly and has become little more than an extraordinarily expensive bus. The Osprey made the cover of Time magazine last week in a highly critical article that called it "A Flying Shame." The problem with the flight into Iraq recalled one of the V-22's first big journeys, a transatlantic flight last year to an English air show. One Osprey suffered engine problems and had to make a precautionary landing in Iceland. The aircraft has had worse moments, though, including three fatal crashes: In 1992, seven crew members died when a tilt-rotor crashed into the Potomac River. In April 2000, a V-22 with 19 crew and Marine passengers aboard crashed in Arizona, killing all. In December 2000, a mechanical problem compounded by a software glitch caused a crash in North Carolina that killed the crew of four. |
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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
On Oct 16, 6:24 am, Mike wrote:
Philadelphia Inquirer October 9, 2007 First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks It will probably prove far easier to shoot down than helos particularly when it's in the transition phase. |
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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
The Media bashing of the V-22 is getting old. The B-58 had more
accidents than the v-22 ever had. Other programs have had troubled histories: F4U, F7U, F-104, AV-8,etc... |
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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
On Oct 17, 3:53 pm, Tiger wrote:
The Media bashing of the V-22 is getting old. The B-58 had more accidents than the v-22 ever had. Other programs have had troubled histories: F4U, F7U, F-104, AV-8,etc... How many of those has to transition from forward flight to hover in a combat zone? |
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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
On Wed, 17 Oct 2007 18:53:09 -0400, Tiger
wrote: The Media bashing of the V-22 is getting old. The B-58 had more accidents than the v-22 ever had. Other programs have had troubled histories: F4U, F7U, F-104, AV-8,etc... Sure, but how many went decades and billions in development for roles which are only moderately useful or better done by other means? The reason the bashing is getting old is the stubborness of the program, not unfairness by the media. Peter Skelton |
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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
Peter Skelton wrote:
On Wed, 17 Oct 2007 18:53:09 -0400, Tiger wrote: The Media bashing of the V-22 is getting old. The B-58 had more accidents than the v-22 ever had. Other programs have had troubled histories: F4U, F7U, F-104, AV-8,etc... Sure, but how many went decades and billions in development for roles which are only moderately useful or better done by other means? The reason the bashing is getting old is the stubborness of the program, not unfairness by the media. Peter Skelton Granted it's been a pricey ride. However I think the big hurtles are past. I'd still take my chances with the V-22 over a flying Greyhound bus with rotors. The tilt rotor is a tech leap that has no real turnback. |
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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
Tiger wrote:
The Media bashing of the V-22 is getting old. The B-58 had more accidents than the v-22 ever had. Other programs have had troubled histories: F4U, F7U, F-104, AV-8,etc... The B 58 What a great example everything sacrificed to high speed everything had to be gold plated andby the tiem it was ready the mission was gone Nevertheless, it had a much smaller weapons load and more limited range than the B-52 Stratofortress. It had been extremely expensive to acquire (in 1959 it was reported that each of the production B-58As was worth more than its weight in gold). It was a complex aircraft that required considerable maintenance, much of which required specialized equipment, which made it three times as expensive to operate as the B-52. Also against it was an unfavorably high accident rate: 26 aircraft were lost in accidents, 22.4% of total production. An engine loss at supersonic cruise was very difficult to safely recover from due to differential thrust. SAC had been dubious about the type from the beginning, although its crews eventually became enthusiastic about the aircraft (its performance and design were appreciated, although it was never easy to fly). By the time the early problems had largely been resolved and SAC interest in the bomber had solidified, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara decided that the B-58 was not going to be a viable weapon system. It was during its introduction that the surface-to-air missile became a viable and dangerous weapon system, one the Soviet Union extensively deployed. The "solution" to this problem was to fly at low altitudes, minimizing the radar line-of-sight and thus detection time. While the Hustler was able to fly these sorts of missions, it could not do so at supersonic speeds, thereby giving up the high performance the design paid so dearly for. Its moderate range suffered further due to the thicker low-altitude air. Its early retirement, slated for 1970, was ordered in 1965, and despite efforts of the Air Force to earn a reprieve, proceeded on schedule. sounds like the V-22 Vince |
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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
Tiger wrote:
Peter Skelton wrote: On Wed, 17 Oct 2007 18:53:09 -0400, Tiger wrote: The Media bashing of the V-22 is getting old. The B-58 had more accidents than the v-22 ever had. Other programs have had troubled histories: F4U, F7U, F-104, AV-8,etc... Sure, but how many went decades and billions in development for roles which are only moderately useful or better done by other means? The reason the bashing is getting old is the stubborness of the program, not unfairness by the media. Peter Skelton Granted it's been a pricey ride. However I think the big hurtles are past. I'd still take my chances with the V-22 over a flying Greyhound bus with rotors. The tilt rotor is a tech leap that has no real turnback. All transports are greyhound busses That is the mission The V-22 is right up there with the amphicar , the battleship/carrier and other hybrids It has to convert to a really crappy helicopter to take off or land Vince |
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"First Ospreys Land In Iraq; One Arrives After 2 Setbacks"
On Oct 17, 4:14?pm, wrote:
On Oct 17, 3:53 pm, Tiger wrote: The Media bashing of the V-22 is getting old. The B-58 had more accidents than the v-22 ever had. Other programs have had troubled histories: F4U, F7U, F-104, AV-8,etc... How many of those has to transition from forward flight to hover in a combat zone? How many of those will lose 24-26 men instead of 1-10 if shot down? None in US aviation inventory history. And, don't say heavy transports have either b/c the V-22 is not one of them and is completely vunerable in transitional flight as compared to evasive maneuvering, ditching, and a controlled crashed landing in the big transports. In the Osprey, you are a sitting duck in transition- take-off or landing. Rob |
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