V-22 Osprey Thread - News, Pics, Videos

[TerraN_EmpirE]

Well there is that, or this

There Are SF teams who want to be deployed on the ground and make more then the 20 or so miles a hard march can give in a day.

 

[kwaigonegin]

At the moment Strehl, There is still only one Osprey remote gun system. There has been some research into the possibility of a replacement for it as that gun system is less then Ideal It takes up weight, eats up space and the station is awkward to use. There were plans for a nose mounted gun. There is the now tested rocket and missile pods and the ramp gunner. but being honest because of the fact that V22 is more a medium lifter then a heavy weight if want to up gun it's best to build a gunship rather then bolt on. either that or you would need to farther hot rod the V22 to a heavier cargo lift to accommodate the 800 pound gun and find a way to intigrate the gun more into the Osprey's systems for easier use.

I don't think the Ospreys would make good gunships due to the giant rotors up front. Certainly a chin turret is out of the question although a AC130 type weapons package (minus the howitzers) might be possible or a weapon system mounted on the ramp.
Unlike the Hercs where the props are mounted much higher and further out on the wings, the Osprey's large diameter props pretty much precludes any forward firing.
The chin turret we all see in the A-Team movie is pure Hollywood. In real life the gun would shred the blades out and commit hara kiri unless it can only be activated in hover mode but that's not ideal.
then again in hover mode any side firing guns can potentially hit the engines too when they are elevated vertically. Like I said not ideal.

 

[TerraN_EmpirE]

Kwai that depends on the type of gunship you envision.
Check my nose Turret.

As you can see it would traverse some forward angles but not anywhere near far enough back to shoot into the Engines or Nacelles. Taken From

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Who in tern attributes to Barton, V., De Pasqual, E., J., "Defensive Armament for the V-22 Selection, Integration and Development", NDIA, 2002.
Farther we could keep the existing Guardian mounted under the belly and add the side mounted weapons like the APKWS and Hellfires the Marines recently tested. Finally you could use the ramp to palette mount other weapons. Pretty? No. But it could have its uses. A "Gun-sprey" could be attached to a LHA or LHD or US Socom's own special mission ship to support forward staged SF forces. meaning those forces would not have to call back to the US for a Spooky unless the target looks really fortified.

 

[kwaigonegin]

Kwai that depends on the type of gunship you envision.
Check my nose Turret.
View attachment 14362
As you can see it would traverse some forward angles but not anywhere near far enough back to shoot into the Engines or Nacelles. Taken From

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Who in tern attributes to Barton, V., De Pasqual, E., J., "Defensive Armament for the V-22 Selection, Integration and Development", NDIA, 2002.
Farther we could keep the existing Guardian mounted under the belly and add the side mounted weapons like the APKWS and Hellfires the Marines recently tested. Finally you could use the ramp to palette mount other weapons. Pretty? No. But it could have its uses. A "Gun-sprey" could be attached to a LHA or LHD or US Socom's own special mission ship to support forward staged SF forces. meaning those forces would not have to call back to the US for a Spooky unless the target looks really fortified.

I do like the drawing however I just don''t know if there is enough space to mount the chin turret and the components that comes with it including the ammo drum etc.
The artist only drew the gun and not take into account the parts that are in those section currently. The cockpit electronics, wires etc goes pretty deep into the nose. I've seen an Osprey up close including the guts and everything is jammed pretty tight. To make modification to the nose section would require serious engineering redesign.

 

[TerraN_EmpirE]

That's part of the reasons I said purpose built. I suspect as you do that to achieve this would demand a remodel of the cockpit and nose. And if chose to go wider then wait for V22C model advantages of course would be along the way you could slave the turret to the copilots' helmet and V22 transports would have a control method less prone to inducing vertigo.2

 

[Scratch]

I do think until there's proper escorts, putting a fire support capability to the Osprey does make trmendeous sense. However, since it's neiter a conventional helicopter, nor a conventional plane, a conventional fit is probably the wrong way to go. I think any gun based system is really not well suited.
A small Griffen launcher on the ramp, like in a HARVEST HAWK or the aforementioned, forwared firing APKWS solution sound quiet reasonable to me. Traversing, forward firing guns seem rather complex to introduce. And a HMG that only covers the rear hemisphere seems a bit misplaced. Except maybe for one plane in a flight of more, covering the already secured LZ.

 

[TerraN_EmpirE]

V22B proven for F135 transport.

Sailors and Marines remove a power module for the F-35B Lightning II aircraft from an MV-22 Osprey assault support aircraft aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1). Wasp is underway conducting the first phase of operational testing for the F-35B Lightning II aircraft. - See more at:

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Marine Ospreys Support Lightning Out at Sea

By Cpl. Anne Henry | U.S. Marine Corps
Thursday, June 4, 2015
As Marines and sailors have been working together to conduct an assessment of F-35B Lightning II integration into amphibious operations over the past two weeks, they are learning to overcome the challenges inherent in maintaining and resupplying one of the world's most advanced pieces of military technology while out at sea.

One key component of the F-35B Operational Trials, or OT-1, included assessing the maintenance and logistical measures necessary to keep the F-35B flying aboard a U.S. Navy amphibious vessel in standard sea conditions.

The F-35B engine power module found itself at center stage of the OT-1 supply and logistics capability assessment about sixty miles off the East Coast of the United States May 21.

The power module is the largest and most important part of the F-35B's engine. Weighing about 4,500 pounds, safely transporting this intricate piece of technology from a storage facility on a military base in the States, across ocean waters, and onto the deck of a pitching ship is no easy task. And it had never been done before.

"The power module is the core of the F-35B engine," said Michael Chotkowski, who is in charge of F-35B deployment integration with Pratt & Whitney. "The engine is broken down into five different modules: fan, augmenter, nozzle, gearbox and the power, which is the number one module."

Up until a few months ago, there was no way to transport replacement power modules to a ship, or damaged power modules from the ship to a repair facility. That was, until a system was put in place using an MV-22B Osprey, a shipping stand constructed with internal suspension, known as a "buck," and an overhead bridge crane aboard the ship to insert the power module into the plane.

"Pratt & Whitney had to design and build a shipping buck that could constrain and protect the power module when it is in the back of an MV-22B," said Jeff Ward, who is in charge of F-35B deployment integration with Headquarters Marine Corps. "The buck, which is the critical piece here, did not exist six months ago. It was created to hold and protect the power module while it is being transported."

The buck was designed as a portable casing to roll the power module onto and off the Osprey. It also serves to protect the power module in the back of an MV-22B Osprey as it flies across the open sea, where it is subjected to the standard movement and vibrations that are inherent in amphibious flight operations due to high winds and rough water.

"The buck has four solid steel posts and two tools on the front and on the back mount of the engine cases. This provides structural integrity," said Chotkowski. "It also has vibratory isolators built into it that are tuned to dampen out the frequencies that come from the MV-22B, and could do damage to the bearings in the power module."

Part one of the operation consisted of loading the power module onto a buck at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland. Next, an MV-22B Osprey from New River, North Carolina flew into Patuxent River to pick up the module and buck. Then the Osprey flew more than 60 miles out to the ship, touching down on the deck of USS Wasp, as it rolled with the waves. The team then wheeled the buck out of the Osprey and onto the deck of the ship, with just several inches of clearance on either side.

"The process of unloading the module from the MV-22B is very difficult, because even though the module outside of its container is smaller, it is still very large for the MV-22B," said David Myersm, who is a part of the cargo and special operations team with U.S. Naval Air Systems Command. "It took 16 straps to tie it down in the aircraft. Cargo in the MV-22B needs to be restrained in a specific manor, and it takes a lot of straps to hold down 9,000 pounds."

The next stage dealt with lowering the power module down to the ship's maintenance bay, and proving the ability to safely transfer the module from the shipping buck into an existing container. This was accomplished by personnel from Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron 22.

"We had to show that we could use the Navy's overhead bridge crane [built into the ceiling of the hangar bay] to transfer the power module from the shipping buck to an existing container, where it can be stored for long term if necessary," said Chotkowski.

The demonstration proved to be successful, allowing for data to be drawn and lessons to be learned for future F-35B deployments aboard amphibious vessels.

"From this evolution, we know that we can now put a power module into an MV-22B and bring it out to an amphibious vessel," said Ward. "We can now resupply the Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force in any environment by using the MV-22B. This is an important milestone for the program."

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[Jeff Head]

V22B proven for F135 transport.

Sailors and Marines remove a power module for the F-35B Lightning II aircraft from an MV-22 Osprey assault support aircraft aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1). Wasp is underway conducting the first phase of operational testing for the F-35B Lightning II aircraft.

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! And really important news.

Which just paves the way for it doing the same for the F-35C as a COD aircraft on the carriers.

 

[TerraN_EmpirE]

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[strehl]

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View attachment 14739

I was tempted to post that but I chickened out because it was a photo from a major news service and I thought they would be more anal retentive in copyright infringement.