Higher, Farther, Faster: Ospreys in Iraq

[unhappycamper]

Higher, Farther, Faster: Ospreys in Iraq
Military.com | By Christian Lowe | January 21, 2008

Al ASAD, Iraq - The Marine Corps moved heaven and earth to get them here. An amphibious assault ship was commandeered specifically to carry the New River, N.C.-based squadron halfway around the world to the most dangerous war zone on the planet.

And there was a lot riding on this deployment. Billions of dollars were spent over nearly three decades on a technology that many said would never work. And its track record -- at least in the early years -- wasn’t very good.

But the Corps’ most high-profile program is finally deployed, and from the looks of it, the MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor transport is living up to its promise.

"There’s nothing in the inventory that can keep up with the Osprey," said Lt. Col. Paul Rock, commander of Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263, which deployed here in late September. "This aircraft can scream across the ground."

And that’s a big deal in a war zone still simmering with insurgents and terrorist-inspired upheaval. The more an aircraft can stay out of the danger zone the better.


Rest of article at: http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,160419,00.html