The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey is an American multi-use, tiltrotor military transport and cargo aircraft with both vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and short takeoff and landing (STOL) capabilities. As the first production aircraft of its type, it is designed to combine the functionality of a conventional helicopter with the long-range, high-speed cruise performance of a turboprop aircraft, and is operated by the United States and Japan. It first flew in 1989, and after a long development was fielded in 2007.
The failure of Operation Eagle Claw in 1980 during the Iran hostage crisis underscored that there were military roles for which neither conventional helicopters nor fixed-wing transport aircraft were well-suited. The United States Department of Defense (DoD) initiated a program to develop an innovative transport aircraft with long-range, high-speed, and vertical-takeoff capabilities, and the Joint-service Vertical take-off/landing Experimental (JVX) program officially began in 1981. A partnership between Bell Helicopter and Boeing Helicopters was awarded a development contract in 1983 for the V-22 tiltrotor aircraft. The Bell-Boeing team jointly produces the aircraft. The V-22 first flew in 1989 and began flight testing and design alterations; the complexity and difficulties of being the first tiltrotor for military service led to many years of development. The Osprey has been involved in a number of accidents that have raised concerns.
The United States Marine Corps (USMC) began crew training for the MV-22B Osprey in 2000 and fielded it in 2007; it supplemented and then replaced their Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knights. The U.S. Air Force (USAF) fielded its version of the tiltrotor, the CV-22B, in 2009. Since entering service with the Marine Corps and Air Force, the Osprey has been deployed in transportation and medevac operations over Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Kuwait. The U.S. Navy began using the CMV-22B for carrier onboard delivery duties in 2021.
Development
Origins The failure of Operation Eagle Claw, the Iran hostage rescue mission, in 1980 demonstrated to the U.S. military a needWhittle 2010, p. 62. for "a new type of aircraft, that could not only take off and land vertically but also could carry combat troops, and do so at speed."Mackenzie, Richard (writer). "Flight of the V-22 Osprey" (Television production). Mackenzie Productions for Military Channel, 7 April 2008. Retrieved 29 March 2009. Additionally, a concentrated force is vulnerable to a single nuclear weapon. Airborne solutions with high speed and range allow for their rapid dispersal to reduce this vulnerability.Whittle 2010, p. 55. The U.S. Department of Defense began the JVX aircraft program in 1981, under U.S. Army leadership.
The established tactical purpose of the USMC is to perform an amphibious landing, which the JVX program promised to facilitate. The USMC's primary helicopter model, the CH-46 Sea Knight, was aging, and no replacement had been accepted.Whittle 2010, p. 91. Because the USMC's amphibious capability would be significantly reduced without the CH-46, USMC leadership believed a proposal to merge the Marine Corps with the Army was a credible threat.Whittle 2010, p. 87: "As Kelly saw it, the future of the Marine Corps was riding on it."Whittle 2010, p. 155. This potential merger was akin to a proposal by President Truman following World War II.Whittle 2010, pp. 53, 55–56. The Office of the Secretary of Defense and Navy administration opposed the tiltrotor project, but pressure from Congress had a significant effect on the program's development.Scroggs, Stephen K. "Army Relations with Congress: Thick Armor, Dull Sword, Slow Horse" p. 232. Greenwood Press, 2000. .
The Navy and USMC were given the lead in 1983.Norton 2004, p. 35.Moyers, Al (Director of History and Research). "The Long Road: AFOTEC's Two-Plus Decades of V-22 Involvement" . Headquarters Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center, United States Air Force, 1 August 2007."Chapter 9: Research, Development, and Acquisition". Department of the Army Historical Summary: FY 1982. Center of Military History (CMH), United States Army, 1988. . The JVX combined requirements from the USMC, USAF, Army and Navy.Norton 2004, pp. 22–30."AIAA-83-2726, Bell-Boeing JVX Tilt Rotor Program". American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), 16–18 November 1983. A request for preliminary design proposals was issued in December 1982. Interest was expressed by Aérospatiale, Bell Helicopter, Boeing Vertol, Grumman, Lockheed, and Westland. Contractors were encouraged to form teams. Bell partnered with Boeing Vertol to submit a proposal for an enlarged version of the Bell XV-15 prototype on 17 February 1983. Since this was the only proposal the JVX program received, a preliminary design contract was awarded on 26 April 1983.Norton 2004, pp. 31–33.Kishiyama, David. "Hybrid Craft Being Developed for Military and Civilian Use". Los Angeles Times, 31 August 1984.
The JVX aircraft was designated V-22 Osprey on 15 January 1985; by that March, the first six prototypes were being produced, and Boeing Vertol was expanded to handle the workload.Adams, Lorraine. "Sales Talk Whirs about Bell Helicopter". Dallas Morning News,10 March 1985."Boeing Vertol launches Three-Year, $50 Million Expansion Program". The Philadelphia Inquirer, 4 March 1985. Production work is split between Bell and Boeing. Bell Helicopter manufactures and integrates the wing, nacelles, rotors, drive system, tail surfaces, and aft ramp, as well as integrating the Rolls-Royce engines and performing final assembly. Boeing Helicopters manufactures and integrates the fuselage, cockpit, avionics, and flight controls."V-22 Osprey Backgrounder". Boeing Defense, Space & Security, February 2010."Military Aircraft: The Bell-Boeing V-22". Bell Helicopter, 2007. Retrieved 30 December 2010. The USMC variant received the MV-22 designation, and the USAF variant received CV-22; this was reversed from normal procedure to prevent USMC Ospreys from having a conflicting CV designation with aircraft carriers.Norton 2004, p. 30. Full-scale development began in 1986.RL31384, "V-22 Osprey Tilt-Rotor Aircraft: Background and Issues for Congress". Congressional Research Service, 22 December 2009. On 3 May 1986, Bell Boeing was awarded a US$1.714 billion contract for the V-22 by the U.S. Navy. At this point, all four U.S. military services had acquisition plans for the V-22.Goodrich, Joseph L. "Bell-Boeing team lands contract to develop new tilt-rotor aircraft, 600 jobs expected from $1.714-billion project for Navy". Providence Journal, 3 May 1986.
The first V-22 was publicly rolled out in May 1988.Belden, Tom. "Vertical-takeoff plane may be the 21st century's intercity bus". Toronto Star, 23 May 1988."Tilt-rotor craft flies like copter, plane" Sports Ghoda, 28 August 2023. That year, the U.S. Army left the program, citing a need to focus its budget on more immediate aviation programs. In 1989, the V-22 survived two separate Senate votes that could have resulted in cancellation."2 Senators key to fate of Boeing's V-22 Osprey". The Philadelphia Inquirer, 6 July 1989.Mitchell, Jim. "Gramm defends Osprey's budget cost: Senator makes pitch for V-22 as president stumps for B-2 bomber". Dallas Morning News, 22 July 1989. Despite the Senate's decision, the Department of Defense instructed the Navy not to spend more money on the V-22."Pentagon halts spending on V-22 Osprey". Chicago Tribune, 3 December 1989. As development cost projections greatly increased in 1988, Defense Secretary Dick Cheney tried to defund it from 1989 to 1992, but was overruled by Congress, which provided unrequested program funding.Norton 2004, p. 49. Multiple studies of alternatives found the V-22 provided more capability and effectiveness with similar operating costs.Norton 2004, p. 52. The Clinton Administration was supportive of the V-22, helping it attain funding.
Although the Army departed the program, it eventually developed and chose a tiltrotor to replace the UH-60 Blackhawk in the 21st century, and as of the mid-2020s the Army is planning to field the V-280 Valor tiltrotor.
Flight testing and design changes The first of six prototypes first flew on 19 March 1989 in the helicopter mode"Revolutionary plane passes first test" . Toledo Blade, 20 March 1989. and on 14 September 1989 in fixed-wing mode.Mitchell, Jim. "V-22 makes first flight in full airplane mode". Dallas Morning News, 15 September 1989. The third and fourth prototypes successfully completed the first sea trials on in December 1990.Jones, Kathryn. "V-22 tilt-rotor passes tests at sea". Dallas Morning News, 14 December 1990. The fourth and fifth prototypes crashed in 1991–92."Navy halts test flights of V-22 as crash investigated". Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 13 June 1991. From October 1992 to April 1993, the V-22 was redesigned to reduce empty weight, simplify manufacture, and reduce build costs; it was designated V-22B. Flights resumed in June 1993 after safety changes were made to the prototypes.Norton 2004, p. 55. Bell Boeing received a contract for the engineering manufacturing development (EMD) phase in June 1994.Norton 2004, pp. 52–54. The prototypes were also modified to resemble the V-22B standard. At this stage, testing focused on flight envelope expansion, measuring flight loads, and supporting the EMD redesign. Flight testing with the early V-22s continued into 1997.Norton 2004, pp. 55–57.
Flight testing of four full-scale development V-22s began at the Naval Air Warfare Test Center, Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland. The first EMD flight took place on 5 February 1997. Testing soon fell behind schedule.Schinasi 2008, p. 23. The first of four low rate initial production aircraft, ordered on 28 April 1997, was delivered on 27 May 1999. The second sea trials were completed onboard in January 1999. During external load testing in April 1999, a V-22 transported the lightweight M777 howitzer."M777: He Ain't Heavy, He's my Howitzer". Defense Industry Daily, 18 July 2012."Lots Riding on V-22 Osprey" Defense Industry Daily, 12 March 2007.
In 2000, there were two fatal crashes, killing a total of 23 marines, and the V-22 was again grounded while the crashes' causes were investigated and various parts were redesigned.Berler, Ron. "Saving the Pentagon's Killer Chopper-Plane". Wired (CondéNet, Inc), Volume 13, Issue 7, July 2005. In June 2005, the V-22 completed its final operational evaluation, including long-range deployments, high altitude, desert and shipboard operations; problems previously identified had reportedly been resolved.
U.S. Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) worked on software upgrades to increase the maximum speed from , increase helicopter mode altitude limit from or , and increase lift performance.Chavanne, Bettina H. "V-22 To Get Performance Upgrades".Aviation Week, 25 June 2009. By 2012, changes had been made to the hardware, software, and procedures in response to hydraulic fires in the nacelles, vortex ring state control issues, and opposed landings;Pappalardo, Joe. "The Osprey's Real Problem Isn't SafetyIt's Money". Popular Mechanics, 14 June 2012."Software Change Gives V-22 Pilots More Lift Options". thebaynet.com. Retrieved 24 April 2012. reliability has improved accordingly.Capaccio, Tony. . Bloomberg News, 13 January 2012.
An MV-22 landed and refueled on board in an evaluation in October 2012. In 2013, cargo handling trials occurred on . In October 2015, NAVAIR tested rolling landings and takeoffs on a carrier, preparing for carrier onboard delivery.
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