The Aviation Magazine No 52 September-October 2017 | Page 48
The Osprey can be armed with one M240 machine gun (.308 caliber) or a M2 machine gun (.50caliber)
on the loading ramp. A belly dash‐mounted, remotely‐operated gun turret system was created for the
Osprey but seldom used due to its hefty 800 pound weight. Ospreys are routinely escorted by helicopter
gunships and close air support aircraft in order to allow the Osprey to focus on their transport role.
The Osprey is manned by a crew of four including a pilot, copilot and two flight engineers. It can trans‐
port a maximum of 32 troops and carry a maximum internal cargo load of 20,000 pounds or up to 15,000
pounds on its two external hydraulic lifts. The Osprey is 57' 4" long with a wingspan of 45' 10". It's maxi‐
mum height, with nacelles vertical, is 22 ' 1". It's rotors, which can fold in 90 seconds, are 84' 7" wide.
The Osprey has a range of 879 nautical miles and a combat radius of 390 nautical miles.
Ospreys are on display at the American Helicopter Museum and Education Center in West Chester,
Pennsylvania, at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright Patterson Air Force Base
in Dayton, Ohio, and the New River Aviation Memorial at Marine Corps Air Station New River in Jackson‐
ville, North Carolina.
Fleet Week is a United States Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard tradition in which active military ships
recently deployed in overseas operations dock in major cities for one week. Often, Fleet Week includes
displays and flights by various aircraft. I had the opportunity for up close views of the V–22 Osprey and a
CH‐53 Sea Stallion.
MV‐22
The V–22 Osprey is the world's first production tilt‐rotor aircraft with one three‐bladed prop‐rotor, turbo‐
prop engine, and transmission nacelle mounted on each wingtip. It is classified as a powered‐lift aircraft
capable of both vertical takeoff and landing, as well as short take off and landing. It was designed to be
the best combination of a conventional helicopter and a long range, high‐speed turbo‐prop airplane. The
V‐22 Osprey was made in cooperation with Bell Helicopter and Boeing Helicopter. The MV‐22 is the Ma‐
rine designation.
The Osprey first flew in 1989. The U.S. Marine Corps begin training with the Osprey in 2000 and used
them in the field in 2007. The U.S. Air Force started using their version of the Osprey in 2009. The Osprey
has been used in operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Kuwait.
The Osprey has a maximum speed of 305 knots (at 15,000 feet), a maximum altitude limit of 14,000 feet,
and an operational range of 1,100 nautical miles. For takeoff and landing, it typically operate as a helicop‐
ter with the nacelles vertical and rotors horizontal. Once airborne, the nacelles rotate forward 90° in as
little as 12 seconds for horizontal flight, thus converting from a helicopter to the more fuel efficient,
higher speed turbo‐prop aircraft. The Osprey is powered by two Rolls–Royce AE 1107C engines. To ensure
that the Osprey can still fly if one engine fails, the engines are connected by drive shafts to a common
central gearbox. However, the Osprey is generally not capable of hovering on only one engine. The Os‐
prey is equipped with a glass cockpit which incorporates four multi‐function displays and a shared central
display unit. The auto pilot system can take the aircraft from forward flight into a 50 foot hover with no
pilot interaction, other than programming the system. Since the fuselage is not pressurized, personnel
must wear oxygen masks above 10,000 feet.