Osprey Headed Into Combat

zander_0633 said:
Oh! well, that's always the case if the Army wants something badly!
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The Army wasn't involved on this project, it's Marine Corps/Air Force toy.
 
The aircraft has a great of possibilities, and like any totally new design there will be bugs in it and there will be crashes, as there are crashes still today with aircraft that have been flying for years. The only main problem I can see is trying too use this plane in desert conditions when it is going to cause one hell of a dust storm with those huge props. the main problem when it does a vertical landing in those conditions the pilot can't see the ground
 
LeEnfield said:
The aircraft has a great of possibilities, and like any totally new design there will be bugs in it and there will be crashes, as there are crashes still today with aircraft that have been flying for years.
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It's a little more involved and a lot darker than that with the Osprey.
 
I just can't see this as a practical war fighting platform. Special Ops...maybe. Peacetime Search and Rescue...maybe. war fighting...I don't see it happening successfully.
 
G Connor said:
I just can't see this as a practical war fighting platform. Special Ops...maybe. Peacetime Search and Rescue...maybe. war fighting...I don't see it happening successfully.
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You actually have it a little backwards. I say that because it's actually a better conventional transload/transport platform than anything else. CSAR/SOF have to have very specific mission capabilities and the CV-22 cannot accomidate a good majority of them at this time, and probably never will.

It isn't a practical SAR platform at all. So impractical that we're not even looking at it for the new CSAR-X. Down in NOLA after hurricane Katrina we couldn't even think about using the 53s for hoist rescues, the 60s were having a hard enough time getting into the tight spots, knocking stuff off of roofs and breaking things from the rotor wash. The -22 would have blown the people off of their roof tops, and would have had to hoover 40 to 60 feet higher. Not to mention it would have been a ***** trying to find an LZ for it. The size, heat, downwash, and lack of AIE methods (just to name a few things) make it completely out of the question for SAR.

Special Operations falls under "war fighting," btw.
 
Ok, maybe Osprey can replace the C-130 or Globe master in transportation to hard to land places or places without airfield.
 
zander_0633 said:
Ok, maybe Osprey can replace the C-130 or Globe master in transportation to hard to land places or places without airfield.
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It will be used as a trans-load platform for sure, but it can't be used as a replacement for C-130s. If you're using a 130, you've got way more stuff than an Osprey or two can handle.

The Osprey will just become another asset like the 47s/53s etc that are already used to help out with getting supplies in and out of small areas.

The only thing is, it won't be able to do the other missions the 47s and 53s can do.
 
I see a large future for them in the coast guard as well. It is a matter of range and speend. You can get the range out of a chopper but you need a refueler.
Some thing no one has thought of. By comming in to land with the wing at an angle, you can really shorten the landing run. Once the bugs are finally out, I see a market for commercial vaiiants.
 
masterblaster said:
I see a large future for them in the coast guard as well. It is a matter of range and speend. You can get the range out of a chopper but you need a refueler.
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What do you believe the Coast Guard will be able to use this A/C for?

I know it isn't for rescue since the Coast Guard doesn't go out to sea over 200 miles, after that, it goes to Air Force RQS. They don't have any method of refueling their Jayhawks and they don't want/can't afford the cost of having to run tankers, plus training. They also don't wanted the added risk of having to refuel in flight, as someone that's had to do so many times, often in sucky weather, I don't blame them. There's also the fact that the Osprey has killer downwash, it's bad enough trying to fight it in calm waters, add bad weather, rising seas and tired victims, you'll kill them before you can even deploy from the helo. Same for any mountain/forest/urban rescues. Then there's this thing about the fields of view, you get the front and the rear, that's it. Not great when you're looking for a tiny spec in a really big area.

You're better of trying to use an F-16 as a rescue platform than a Osprey.

I'm at a loss as to what you see the Coast Guard using the V-22 for.

Some thing no one has thought of. By comming in to land with the wing at an angle, you can really shorten the landing run. Once the bugs are finally out, I see a market for commercial vaiiants
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Huh? That's the whole purpose of this thing, of course it's been thought of.

It will be years and years and years before you see the Osprey on the civilian market.
 
PJ24 said:
...but what I can't handle is when problems are covered up and ignored to push a project through.

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Like virtually every new machine the military fields? Stryker for the win? It's what happens when those who design the equipment never have to bleed in battle.
 
If they still plan on employing the osprey in combat within the year then I would love to know who is going to be doing the external lifts, because those of us over In 2nd TSB have ceased training missions with the Osprey as of late, the rumor is they crashed another one, that's jsut speculation but the fact is we aren't practising wiht it anymore and it's definately a bird that we need practise with. And now that I think about it if we aren't running training lifts then that means the pilots aren't doing them either, because we usually end up doing them with the new pilots over in 302.
 
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Now using the Osprey in the desert conditions with those two great propellers going at it like mad it is going to create one hell of a dust storm. Either that or it will only land on a concrete pad.
 
Do you think it would really raise more of a dust storm than something like the Chinook?

From my oh so well informed civilian perspective (yeah, sarcasm), the Osprey seems to be a solution without a problem. While it does have an advantage or two, it also seems that fixed and rotary wing aircraft already do a better job in their respective niches than the Osprey can do trying to cover both. If you need greater speed and transport capacity, the C-130 can do the job. If you need vertical take off and insertion capability, the beloved UH-60 awaits your command.
 
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