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View Full Version : V-22 Osprey passes 100,000 flight hours, also to get BAE weapon system



Max
03-12-2011, 02:12 AM
NAVAL AIR SYSTEMS COMMAND PATUXENT RIVER, Md. - The V-22 Joint Program Office announced that the V-22 Osprey surpassed 100,000 flight hours in February while supporting combat operations in Afghanistan

Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 264 (VMM-264), currently operating out of Camp Bastion in Helmand Province supporting Operation Enduring Freedom, was the squadron that took the V-22 over the 100,000-hour mark.

“The Osprey is giving combatant commanders unprecedented agility and operational reach,” said Gen. James Amos, commandant of the Marine Corps. “The revolutionary capability of the MV-22 will be a cornerstone of our Marine Air Ground Task Force. This aircraft is safe and survivable, and effective and efficient.”

During the past decade, the MV-22 has the lowest Class A mishap rate of any currently fielded tactical Marine Corps rotorcraft, according to Naval Safety Center records. The aircraft’s reduced susceptibility, lower vulnerability and advanced crashworthiness have made it the most survivable rotorcraft ever introduced.

“The V-22 is proven and forward deployed supporting combat operations and responding to contingency operations around the world,” said Marine Corps Col. Greg Masiello, head of the V-22 Joint Program Office at the Naval Air Systems Command.

MV-22 and CV-22 Ospreys amassed the flight hours performing combat operations, humanitarian assistance, training, and test and evaluation missions. Almost half of the total hours were flown during the last two years. The milestone marks the latest significant achievement for a program that has had 14 successful combat and humanitarian deployments in theater and aboard ship since the Osprey was first declared operational in 2007.

The revolutionary V-22 Osprey is a joint service, multi-role combat aircraft using tiltrotor technology to combine the vertical performance of a helicopter with the speed and range of a fixed wing aircraft. With its nacelles and rotors in vertical position, it can take off, land and hover like a helicopter. Once airborne, its nacelles can be rotated to transition the aircraft to a turboprop airplane capable of high-speed, high-altitude flight.

“We are only beginning to use Ospreys, bringing unprecedented range, speed and survivability to the warfighter,” Masiello said. “V-22s will continue to excel in combat, and remain ready, effective and survivable.”

The V-22 Osprey is produced under a strategic alliance between Bell Helicopter and Boeing. The current V-22 Osprey program of record calls for 360 aircraft for the U.S. Marine Corps, 50 for the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command, and 48 for the Navy. More than 130 aircraft are currently in operation.

“The entire Bell Boeing team congratulates our USMC and AFSOC customers on eclipsing 100,000 flight hours,” said John Rader, executive director of the Bell Boeing V-22 Program. “The performance of the aircraft in combat and humanitarian missions has been truly remarkable and we continue to take great pride in providing our customers with this revolutionary capability.”


JOHNSON CITY, New York — BAE Systems will provide the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command a defensive weapon system for NAVAIR’s V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft. The system is based on the company’s Remote Guardian SystemTM, (RGS), a remotely operated defensive weapon system that provides 360° of suppressive weapons fire for the V-22.

BAE Systems’ Remote Guardian System is a common airborne defensive capability. RGS, designed to be belly-mounted on the V-22, is the first remote weapon system capable of delivering accurate, sustained fire throughout the aircraft’s flight envelope. It features a compact, retractable design that saves valuable aircraft cabin space and is compatible with the full complement of the V-22’s avionics suite.

“This system will provide vital protection to the V-22, its operators, and the Marines it will carry,” said Jim Garceau, vice president of defense avionics for BAE Systems. “The weapon system’s accuracy and ability to lock onto a stationary target in flight are critical to the defense of the aircraft.”

Under the $14 million contract, which calls for a belly-mounted, all quadrant defensive weapon capability for the Osprey, BAE Systems will produce and support RGS defensive weapon systems to be delivered by the end of 2012. The contract also includes a $12 million exercisable option for additional systems and support.

BAE Systems has been working on the RGS technology for more than four years. The work for this system will be performed at BAE Systems facilities in Johnson City, New York, and Minneapolis, Minnesota.


http://img155.imagevenue.com/loc29/th_895177882_v_22_122_29lo.jpg (http://img155.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=895177882_v_22_122_29lo.jpg)

Godfather
03-12-2011, 02:33 AM
These things are so cool it hurts...

I wonder if we'll ever get smaller tiltorotor aircraft, perhaps replacing the UH-60's years down the road, as you always see in video games and movies (Halo and Avatar for example)

Max
03-12-2011, 02:44 AM
Godfather....you might find this DARPA concept interesting


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pg6LuwyNIxk

Godfather
03-12-2011, 02:46 AM
That's pretty cool... but it's not sexy enough for America :lol:

Max
03-12-2011, 02:50 AM
That's pretty cool... but it's not sexy enough for America :lol:

Maybe if it was piloted by Sports Illustrated swimsuit models it would be sexy enough :mrgreen: