V-22 Osprey

[champi]

Si amais el V-22 no os paseis por esta página:

The V-22 Scandal

[Orel]

Si es cierto lo que dicen...

[meteor]

Joooooder con el V22

Mecaguenla... vaya joyita

[Cancerbero]

Yo creo que ni tanto ni tan poco, en cuanto madure la tecnologí­a...

[champi]

Contesto con algo de retraso:

¿Se sabe algo del Pod de autodefensa?

Pues parece que se acaban de encargar las primeras unidades:
Osprey to Deploy With New Firepower

But Trautman confessed the Corps won't rack up body counts with the new weapon, which is defensive in nature, designed for fire suppression during high-speed infil and exfil missions.

“I wouldn't expect to kill a lot of people with this system,”Trautman said. “It's a very difficult challenge without sophisticated fire control technology to be precise in your targeting.”

The Corps has ordered nine of the so-called Remote Guardian System kits, but hopes to buy scores more to outfit the entire fleet of MV-22 aircraft. The 7.62mm rotary cannon in the RGS is mounted in the belly of an Osprey and is controlled by a crewman with a video game-like joystick and video monitor.

The service is also working to upgrade the Osprey's ramp-mounted machine gun to a .50 caliber version from its current M240 7.62mm machine gun.

Además, en el mismo artí­culo:

In Afghanistan, the Osprey's Gatling gun will join another new detachable weapons package as the Corps plans to introduce a slightly different weapons portfolio to its KC-130J Super Hercules refueler-transports.

Dubbed Harvest Hawk, the KC-130J may incorporate up to three weapons as well as a sophisticated surveillance system. The Corps is exploring including four wing-based Hellfire missiles, rear ramp-based precision munitions and a paratroop door-positioned cannon to the aircraft.

Both the MV-22 and KC-130J weapons packages are roll-on/roll-off kits that can be affixed to the aircraft in upwards of six hours. They are both manned by a dedicated crewman positioned in the rear of the cabin who operates a fire-control system that combines the video feeds and weapons control.

[champi]

Nunca aterrices sobre hierba con un V-22 : Hot-Breathing Osprey Sparks Five-Acre Fire

In the official version, the aircraft landed due to mechanical problems at 7 pm in Holly Shelter Game Land in Pender County, NC. When it was preparing to take off, the heat from the exhaust ignited the grass underneath it.

“The grass fire was quickly extinguished by the crew chief, but caused an undetermined amount of heat damage to the aircraft exterior,”according to a rather bland Corps statement.

The News 14 version is more colorful. They say that fire-fighters did not bring the blaze under control until 11 pm, implying a larger conflagration that could not be put out by one man with a portable extinguisher. Springbored quotes another local news source saying that brush was set on fire. Local emergency management director Eddie King added, “It burned a little less than five acres.”

Springbored can claim some foresight on this one. In April, he stated, “we've known for years that V-22 downwash is notorious for setting nearby vegetation afire”and questioned how this would affect training exercises in Southern California during the dry season”“Are MV-22s going to be restricted to landing at only neatly-groomed, nicely leveled backwoods landing sites? Or do Marines just like hopping off their transport with fire extinguishers?”(Cue the joke about arriving in a hot Landing Zone.)

[champi]

Pues algo más sobre lo que cuesta mantener un V-22: http://www.dodbuzz.com/2009/06/24/worri ... -on-mv-22/

He made it very clear that the Marines are doing everything they can to bring down maintenance costs. The GAO report presented at yesterday's hearing claimed the current cost per flight hour of the “MV-22 today is over $11,000—more than double the target estimate and 140 percent higher than the cost for the CH-46E.”Freeland said the flying hour cost for the B model — the plane that is flying in combat — is closer to $9,700 and will come down over the next two to four years as the Marines implement a range of engineering change orders and craft a maintenance contract.

Among the engineering changes the Marines have recently made to save money, Freeland listed infrared suppressor panels. “We used to replace those at $110,000 a piece. That's because we didn't expect them to break,”he said. Now the service is repairing them for $10,000 per unit. In addition, they have developed $10,000 repair procedures for flaperons that they used to replace $280,000 a pop. And Coanda valves will be repaired for $5,000 instead of replacing them for $27,000.

Y el enlace del informe del GAO (recomendable si os interesa el Osprey): http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d09482.pdf
En ese informe destaca la poca operatividad alcanzada:

the three MV-22 squadrons averaged mission capability rates of about 68, 57, and 61 percent, while the minimum capability rate requirement is 82 percent. In addition, the engines on the MV-22s deployed in Iraq fell short of their estimated “on-wing”service life.

Defectos de fabricación y de suministro de piezas:

The engines on the MV-22s deployed in Iraq also fell short of their estimated “on-wing”service life, lasting less than 400 hours before having to be replaced. The program estimated life is 500-600 hours.
...
Thirteen MV-22 components accounted for over half the spare parts that were not available on base in Iraq when requested. Those components lasted, on average, less than 30 percent of their expected life, with six lasting less than 10 percent of their expected life.

El incremento en el precio:

The initial 1986 estimated procurement unit cost of $37.7 million each has increased by 148 percent to a 2007 estimate of $93.4 million each

Respecto al pod de autodefensa:

A belly-mounted Interim Defensive Weapon System (IDWS) capable of covering all quadrants is being tested. However, in tests, the system jammed frequently. Additionally, it will not be fully integrated into the aircraft systems and is not currently compatible with the shipboard environment. Furthermore, integration of the IDWS into MV-22s will result in a loss of two combat troop seats to accommodate the IDWS avionics rack.

Y algunas conclusiones:

Battlefield commanders and aircraft operators in Iraq identified a need to better understand the role the Osprey should play in fulfilling warfighter needs. They indicated, for example, that the MV-22 may not be best suited for the full range of missions requiring medium lift, because the aircraft's speed cannot be exploited over shorter distances or in transporting external cargo. These concerns were also highlighted in a recent preliminary analysis of the MV-22 by the Center for Naval Analysis, which found that the MV-22 may not be the optimal platform for those missions.
The MV-22's Iraq experience also demonstrated some limitations in situational awareness that challenge operational effectiveness. For example, some MV-22 crew chiefs and troop commanders in Iraq told us that they consider a lack of visibility of activity on the ground from the V-22's troop cabin to be a significant disadvantage—a fact previously noted in operational testing. They noted that the V-22 has only two small windows.
...
The MV-22 operational requirements document based the 24 troop number for the MV-22 variant on an assumption of an average weight for a fully equipped combat troop of 240 pounds; however, improvements in body armor and equipment have raised the weight projection for each Marine with combat equipment to 400 pounds. As a result, the aircraft's planned capacity to transport fully loaded combat troops is 20 rather than 24.
...
Furthermore, according to a 2007 Center for Naval Analysis study, the MV-22 will not be able to externally transport heavier equipment, such as the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle—which is to replace the Marine Corps Humvee.
...
The MV-22 is too large to operate in the same numbers (without altering the ship's current aviation complement) from ships certified for the CH-46 and CH-53 aircraft, including LHA- or LHD-class ships.

Un saludo

[champi]

Primer accidente con ví­ctimas mortales del CV-22 en combate: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiap ... tml?hpt=T2

(CNN) -- A U.S. aircraft crashed in southern Afghanistan, killing three U.S. service members and one civilian employee, a statement from NATO-led forces said Friday.

The cause of the crash of the Air Force CV-22 Osprey was not known, said the International Security Assistance Force statement. Several other service members were injured in the crash late Thursday night.

The CV-22, which conducts long-range infiltration and resupply operations for the U.S. military, went down seven miles west of the city of Qalat, the capital of Zabul province.

Zabiullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Taliban in the region, said Taliban fighters shot down the aircraft. Another spokesman, Qari Yoseph, also claimed responsibility and said that 30 Americans had been killed.

[Orel]

A raí­z de la noticia del Osprey estrellado en Astán, una bonita foto operando allí­:

http://inapcache.boston.com/universal/s ... 03C024.jpg

[Orel]

El V-22 sigue actuando en Iraq y Astán y parece que se está portando bien después de sus difí­ciles inicios:
http://www.delcotimes.com/articles/2010 ... 240168.txt

Por fin empiezan a "enseñarlo": "Boeing's V-22 Osprey starting to show its mettle".

[Roger]

la potencia de los rotores causa un pequeño accidente con heridos en el parque de Staten Island

http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local-beat/Bystanders-Suffer-Minor-Injuries--95253699.html

[Orel]

Resulta chocante ver a los soldados desembarcando del Osprey siguiendo el orden planeado (claro, no se habí­an dado cuenta) mientras la gente y los de proteccion civil corren en sentido contrario hacia donde están los heridos.

[champi]

Algunos problemas con el cañón de autodefensa o más bien con su utilización: http://defensetech.org/2010/05/28/stric ... tling-gun/

By Christian Lowe

CAMP BASTION, Afghanistan — It was touted as the answer to critics who said the MV-22 didn't have enough firepower on board to shoot its way into a hot LZ.

And here in Afghanistan, this deployment of the MV-22s with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 261 marked the first real-world test of the BAE Systems-made Remote Guardian machine gun system '' known in the Corps as the Interim Defensive Weapon System, or “belly gun”for short.

The squadron based here at Bastion air field, adjacent to Camp Leatherneck in Helmand province, has 12 aircraft and an inventory of five of the belly gun systems.
Problem is, they don't want to use them.

Squadron commander Lt. Col. Ivan Thomas downplayed the difficulties with the system, saying simply that the manufacturer was sending over trainers who could help Marines learn how to use the system more effectively. The IDWS consists of a 7.62mm rotary cannon mounted in a retractable box near amidships on the Osprey's undercarriage. There's a targeting and control system inside the bird that uses an X-Box-like controller to steer the optics and gun for 360-degree coverage of the LZ.

Each Osprey also has a M240 7.62mm machine gun mounted to the ramp in the tail. Previous reports have indicated that the Afghanistan Ospreys would have .50 cals mounted on the tail ramp, but the squadron only does that when they think they're going in guns blazing, which isn't often.

Thomas said they've test fired the Remote Guardian system once, “and it's extremely accurate,”he said. But with the kind of dynamic approaches these MV-22s are flying into the zone and the difficulty of looking through a soda straw at the LZ and firing at what's firing at you in time, Thomas has opted to keep the IDWS off every one of his planes.

He argues that the rules of engagement here are so restrictive and the potential downside of a civilian casualty from a misaimed shot so high, he can't take the risk of firing the Gatling gun if there's a chance it will miss.

A senior crew chief I flew with agreed with the skipper, but added the controller/targeting station takes up too much room in the cabin (three seats) and devotes a crew chief's entire attention to running the system.
“And you'd better have a strong stomach,”the gunny said. “Because sitting sideways and trying to keep that thing on target looking at the screen will make you pretty sick.”

The one thing these Marines loved about the IDWS was its highly accurate IR camera. Its crystal clear image and deep zoom capability make it a good capability for situational awareness when it's getting hot.
“I can zoom in and track a guy as he's walking around clear as day,”the gunny said.

But even with the high-speed surveillance capability, the Marines here don't think the belly gun is right for their mission.

[poliorcetes]

Editado para añadir la cita de Polluelo:
Polluelo dijo:

Aunque las cifras han mejorado ligeramente con respecto a las series iniciales el Osprey sigue siendo un bicho carí­simo de operar y aún después de su bautismo de fuego y una ligera mejora sigue sin cumplir los objetivos previstos: Es mas caro de mantener por hora de vuelo que cualquier caza (el doble de lo previsto), su disponibilidad en el último año ha rondado el 65% (lo previsto era un 82%) y de 13 componentes crí­ticos que han causado la mitad de las averias seis de ellos todavia no llegan a cumplir el 10% de su vida media prevista (Si tenian que durar 100.000 horas no duran mas de mil).

Además en este aparato se está usando por primera vez en gran escala el mantenimiento predictivo en vez del programado con lo que cuando no se cumplen las previsiones los errores se tarda mucho mas en subsanarlos porque no hay repuestos disponibles. Es lo que ha ocurrido por ejemplo con las articulaciones de los motores basculantes, tenian que durar 120.000 horas pero no pasan de 500 y como no habia previsión de tantos fallos no hay stocks de respuestos y los cacharros se quedan parados.

Las cosas como son, me parecí­a imposible que todo el salto en capacidad del osprey, siendo además una solución operativamente nueva, fuera encima más barato.

Si sólo el extra que debe suponer las barcazas basculantes y la conexión de las turbinas con ambas hélices para anular el exceso de torque que se producirí­a al perder un motor ya tiene que ser una pesadilla.

Duda: el cacharro éste no puede hacer autorrotación en caso de emergencia, ¿verdad?

[polluelo]

No puede. En caso de emergencia según he leido lo mandado si hay altura ponerse en modo avión para intentar tomar tierra a cucharadas de la manera mas suave posible. Si no hay altura de seguridad apretar los dientes y esperar que los asientos antichoque cumplan su función.