Israeli air force to take second look at V-22 Osprey

[Neil]

The Israeli air force is again evaluating the possible purchase of the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey tiltrotor.

In 2009 the force stopped the evaluation after two years of work.

But in a rare statement to the air force magazine, Maj Gen David Barki, head of the helicopter air division, said that the air force is considering future procurement of the V-22. "It is not included in the multi-year plan that will terminate next year. But one option that we consider for the future, is the V-22. This aircraft can give us operational capabilities that we don't have today."

Israeli experts say that the new interest in the V-22 is for fast deployment of Special Forces troops and medical evacuation.

Meanwhile, the V-22 fleet has surpassed 100,000 flight hours. The milestone arrived on 10 February during a US Marine Corps MV-22 combat mission in Afghanistan.

"The V-22 is proven and forward-deployed, supporting combat operations and responding to contingency operations around the world," says US Marine Corps Col Greg Masiello, head of the V-22 Joint Program Office at Naval Air Systems Command.

"The Osprey brings unprecedented range, speed and survivability to the warfighter and will continue to excel in combat and remain ready, effective and survivable," he says.


http://www.flightglobal.com/article...force-to-take-second-look-at-v-22-osprey.html

 

[vikramrana_1812]

Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey
Military Aircraft

​

The V-22 Osprey is of a a revolutionary tilt-rotor VSTOL military aircraft developed to combine the positive aspects of a turboprop aircraft and a helicopter. Airframe construction uses the latest composite graphite-reinforced epoxy to provide a light but strong structure with a high level of corrosion resistance and more importantly battle damage tolerance.
Lift and propulsion is provided by twin 38 ft diameter 3-bladed "proprotor's" each driven by a specially developed 6150 shp Allison turbo-shaft engine, the twin proprotor's are interconnected by drive-shafts to synchronise their speed and allow flight to continue, albeit at a lower speed in case of engine damage of failure.
The Osprey utilises a sophisticated fly-by-wire system which has triple redundancy built in which provides a high level of survivability in a hostile environment The Osprey's design allows for the incorporation of a state of the art electronic warfare suite including a missile warning system and a countermeasure system.
The prototype Osprey first flew in 1989, it's Prime Contractors are Boeing Defence, Bell Helicopter and the Allison Engine Company, this clearly reflects the nature of the Osprey which can be thought of as a turboprop
aircraft and helicopter combined with power provided by turbo-shafts.
Development of unique Osprey design has resulted in three test aircraft crashing with the loss of 26 men, the last, and worst incident occurring in April 2000.

​

The Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey entered operational service with the U.S. Marine Corps in 2007 and with several USAF Special Operations Squadrons shortly afterwards. The V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft has been used operationally in a support role in both the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts.
Osprey prototype specifications:

• Length: 57' 4"
• Width: 84' 7"
• Height: 22' 1"
• Maximum VTOL Take off Weight 47,500 lb
• Combat Range 200nm
• Heavy Lift Range with 10,000 lb external load: 50 nm
• Cruise Airspeed 235 kts
• Engines: Twin 6150 shp Allison synchronised turbo-shaft engines

 

[vikramrana_1812]

BellBoeing V-22 Osprey

Tilt-rotor transport

A full-scale production of the BellBoeing V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor transport began in 2007​

Entered service 2007 Crew 2 men Dimensions and weight Length 17.47 m Rotor diameter 11.58 m each Wing span 15.52 m Height 5.38 m Weight (empty) 14.4 t Weight (maximum take off) 27.4 t Engines and performance Engines 2 x Allison T406-AD-400 turboshafts Engine power 2 x 5 890 - 6 150 hp Maximum cruising speed 509 km/h Range with payload 2 224 km Payload Maximum payload 9 t internally and 6.8 t externally Typical load 24 troops or 12 litters plus attendants​

​

In the early 1980s Bell helicopter Textron and boeing Vertol began collaboration to develop a larger derivative of the XV-15 tilt-rotor demonstrator for the Joint Services Advanced Vertical Lift Aircraft programme. Combining the vertical lift capabilities of a helicopter with the fast-cruise forward flight efficiencies of a fixed-wing turboprop aircraft, the resulting V-22 Osprey was awarded full-scale development in 1985.
Mounted in wingtip nacelles, the engines can be swivelled through 97.5° and drive three-bladed prop-rotors through interconnected drive shafts. For shipboard stowage, the main planes pivot centrally to rotate along the fuselage top, the prop-rotor blades also folding in parallel.
Initial requirements called for 913 Ospreys, comprising 52 MV-22A assault versions for the USMC and US Army; 80 USAF CV-22As for long-range special forces transport; and 50 US Navy also foresaw a need for up to 300 SV-22As for ASW.
Flight-testing started on 19 March 1989, but the programme suffered a serious setback on 21 July 1992 with the crash of the fourth prototype. Already under financial and political review, a serious reappraisal of the Osprey programme followed, with the ultimate conclusion that 300 (later 425) aircraft would be acquired for the USMC only.
The MV-22A can cary up to 24 troops, or 12 litters and medical attendants. In September 1994 production authorisation was granted for this batch, plus 48 Ospreys for the US Navy and 50 for the US Air Force. The loss of three V-22s during testing in 2000 cast a further shadow over the programme, but this most important of future combat aircraft reached IOC with the USMC during 2001/2002. Pre-production deliveries to the USAF and US Navy started in 2003.


http://www.military-today.com/helicopters/bellboeing_v_22_osprey.htm