Posted on 12/07/2023 7:11:32 AM PST by Yo-Yo
“Only because you can buy 20 Blackhawk helicopters for every V22.”
A few V22s might be able to offer a military advantage that makes it worth that much. Or that was true when the aircraft was put into service. Now, with all sorts of unmanned aircraft, it might no longer be true.
I can see where the V22 would be a more complex thing to keep stable, and more complex in general than a helicopter.
One of my best friends and my college roommate was a Phrog driver in the Marine Corps for 12 years starting around 1998 or so until 2010. So they were still around for a long time after the Ospreys came along. He did a couple tours in Iraq with the “Battle Phrog”.
...and have to find the crews to man them.
The military took delivery of 742 B-52s but only 21 B-2s. Given the choice, the DoD prefers equipment costs over manpower costs.
Every Navy SEAL sighs a breath of relief. 😏
When the Marines and Air Force first acquired the Osprey, the engines were bought with a "power by the hour" maintenance contract from Rolls-Royce. The government paid a flat rate per flight hour, and Rolls-Royce was responsible for all engine maintenance.
Rolls-Royce lost their shirts early on with this deal, as the Liberty engine was failing at a much faster rate than predicted in Afghanistan and Iraq. But that incentivized Rolls to upgrade and improve the engine reliability. Something they wouldn't necessarily have done so aggressively had the Power by the Hour contract not been in place, and they were just selling spare parts to the Marine Corps.
It might stun you to learn that the U.S. Army just chose the Bell V-280 Valor as the next generation replacement for the UH-60 Blackhawk.
THe ‘experts’ strike again
Replacing the Greyhound gives you a much shorter legged plane that is far more dangerous and complex. The Greyhound has had 8 crashes since 1964. The Osprey has doubled that in a third of the time. God only knows how much worse it would be if they did it by flight hours.
The same can be said for any two rotor helicopter like the now retired CH-46 and the much larger CH-47. Both have synchronizing gearboxes for the two rotors and the twin engines. You lose that synchronization, you're done. No autorotation when the two rotor assemblies become uncoupled.
And a plane with less cargo capacity than the Greyhound.
But the Greyhound couldn't ferry the F135 engine without dismantling it into two sections.
https://www.aviationtoday.com/2018/04/18/f-35cs-cant-receive-spare-engines-carriers-without-v-22s/
For better or worse (I'm with you, it's worse) the Navy chose the CMV-22B largely because it could deliver the F135.
Shouldn't it be compared to other aircraft that do a similar job instead of supersonic fighter jets? ie) Chinooks and Stallions?
“It might stun you to learn that the U.S. Army just chose the Bell V-280 Valor”
I’m too ignorant of military aircraft to be stunned but wow, good one for Bell.
From Wikipedia on the V-280:
“In one major difference from the earlier V-22 Osprey tiltrotor, the V-280 engines remain in place while the rotors and drive shafts tilt. A driveshaft runs through the straight wing, allowing both prop rotors to be driven by a single engine in the event of engine loss.”
Wikipedia refers to “Bell V-280 Valor”, and it refers to the “Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey.”
Wikipedia says “A partnership between Bell Helicopter and Boeing Helicopters was awarded a development contract in 1983 for the V-22.”
Wikipedia says development of the V-280 started in 2013.
The Bell V-280 Valor Will Replace the Army's Legendary Black Hawk
Not quite. Blackhawks, depending on configuration, cost between $10 million and $25 million. Ospreys cost about $71 million. So it is between 3-ish and 7 Blackhawks to an Osprey.
They actually aren't a direct replacement for Blackhawks. They are more a transport unit. It is replacing different units in different services, like the Sea Knight CH-46 which entered active service in 1964, almost 60 years ago.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jub8dVQVGSk
Deep Intel on Why ALL Ospreys are Grounded
(Ward Carroll)
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