Baron_Von_Bad_Beaver  - 2011-02-19
I flew in one of these in Iraq. Compared to the USMC's aging fleet of CH53s and UH-1s (yes, the hueys from Vietnam) it's quite safe and fast. I remember me and my buddies making jokes about it before we boarded on, about how we managed to make it 8 months with no one in our unit getting injured or killed only to lose two squads (Ospreys are rather small) on our last day on the FOB. The ride was rather fast and smooth, it took us 30 minutes to get to Al Asad where it would have taken a CH53E 55 minutes. I was quite impressed (and relieved).
Despite it's bad history during development (it was initially a more effective Marine killer than the Taliban it seems) I don't think there have been any KIAs as a result of Osprey crashes; a favorable comparison to that of the number of deaths by older model CH47s and 53s and Blackhawks.
That, and the model fills a very important niche in the USMC's tactical doctrine, a nice stand-in between a CH-130 and a CH53E, something the Marines desperately needed.
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BOOSH - 2011-02-19 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accidents_and_incidents_involving_the _V-22_Osprey
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Baron_Von_Bad_Beaver - 2011-02-19 It's not a complete list, I think there were more accidents than that. Either way, it's not that bad compared to a CH53E or a 47. Here's a VERY partial list of UH-60 crashes: http://www.google.com/search?q=Sikorsky+UH-60+Black+Hawk+accidents &ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=fire fox-a#q=Sikorsky+UH-60+Black+Hawk+accident+history&hl=en&client=fi refox-a&hs=qht&sa=X&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&tbs=tl:1,tl_num :20&prmd=ivns&ei=yR9gTYL2HMG88gaM_ODpCw&ved=0CF4QywEoAg&bav=on.1,o r.&fp=5e2b21bd614e0a97
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Repomancer - 2011-02-19 Yeah, but Baron -- there were a hell of a lot more UH-60s than Ospreys.
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Mancakes - 2011-02-19 Somebody pull up accidents per operation hour. I can't be bothered.
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Cena_mark - 2011-02-19 Those things look stupid. We don't have any in the USCG.
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Explodotron - 2011-02-20 Puddles rarely require helo transport, anyhow.
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Tom Collins - 2011-02-19
Asymmetrical ring vortex state.
Thing is a good piece of hardware.
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William Burns - 2011-02-19
lol bootlickers
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Toenails - 2011-02-19
A test flight of an unproven propulsion system in 1991 was a complete failure?
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FABIO - 2011-02-20 These things are a hell of a lot more practical and useful than stealth bombers and cold war dinosaurs like the F-22.
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MrBuddy - 2011-02-20 Anything can be about partisan politics if you think about it.
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PUKED - 2011-02-19
CRYING ONLINE
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Repomancer - 2011-02-19
In my flight simulator days, I was at the HAI (helicopter assoc. int'l) show in Dallas one year when they flew an Osprey in and landed it in the parking lot. It was quite a thing to see. McDonnell - Douglas flew in a NOTAR (no tail rotor) copter too, where the antitorque reaction was provided by turbine exhaust. When the show was over, I helped pull Airwolf out of the exhibition hall, just to be able to say I helped pull Airwolf out of the exhibition hall. This was before Ray Smuckles bought it, of course.
Great concept, shaky execution. A VTOL aircraft that can travel without the speed limit imposed by retreating blade stall would be a truly awesome thing.
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MacGyver Style Bomb - 2011-02-19
It's so nice to see people who know what the fuck they're talking about.
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standard8mm - 2011-02-19
Why don't they use all that UFO technology we've been researching?
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seriouslyuguys - 2011-02-19
I don't know why, but I love the "ugly" planes our military uses. The osprey, the A10 "warthog", and the C-130 are amongst my favorites. When I lived in Athens, GA the ospreys would fly over every so often and it made such an awesome sound like a bunch of helicopters from hell.
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