February 8, 2024 - by Jon Hemler
The Department of Defense’s (DOD) V-22 Osprey fleet remains grounded (save for one deployed Marine unit), having not flown since before the beginning of the new year. Each additional no-fly day increases the impact and consequences of sitting out a critical aircraft in Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force squadrons. Pressure and focus on the Osprey continue to build from many angles. The Pentagon and industry’s ability to assess the issues, provide a sustainable solution, restore trust, and return the V-22 to flight quickly is crucial for military operations and forthcoming tiltrotor and vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) programs.
The most recent grounding of all U.S. military V-22s began on December 6th following the November 29th crash of an Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) CV-22B conducting a training flight off Japan. Eight service members were lost in the accident. While details of the cause of the crash have not been released, the Air Force initially indicated the crash likely occurred due to a mechanical failure and not pilot or crew error.
Approximately 415 total Ospreys are down across the services. Japan, the only foreign operator of the V-22, also grounded its fleet of 17 aircraft. The U.S. Marine Corps flies the lion’s share, roughly 335 MV-22Bs, as an amphibious assault aircraft. Air Force CV-22s provide long-range insertion and extraction capabilities for special operations forces, and the Navy CMV-22B, which reached initial operating capability (IOC) in 2022, replaces the fixed-wing C-2A Greyhound for the carrier-onboard delivery (COD) mission.
https://dsm.forecastinternational.com/2024/02/08/grounded-assessing-the-v-22-ospreys-challenges/
Since there is a black box on this aircraft and there were warnings going off like the master caution and the pilot had the opportunity to land.........that is inexcusable...........end of story
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