Osprey over Anabar

North County Times:

Nearly two months after the controversial Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft began flying in Iraq, a Marine Corps official said this week that no significant problems have emerged for the much-troubled aircraft.

"They have been moving troops and supplies with ease," Maj. Eric Dent at Marine Corps headquarters at the Pentagon said in response to an inquiry from the North County Times. "There have been no significant maintenance issues."

The Osprey's performance is closely watched by Marine Corps officials and critics of the hybrid aircraft, which takes off and lands like a helicopter and flies like an airplane at more than 400 mph with tilt-rotor propellers.

The Osprey and its tortured development were the subject of a Time magazine cover story last month, which noted the Marine Corps had spent $20 billion developing the aircraft and that 30 lives were lost during training missions before it was put into service.

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The North Carolina unit in Iraq, VMM-263, has been flying sorties in Iraq for more than a month, although the Marine Corps would not say precisely how many missions it has flown.

"So far, the squadron has performed exactly as projected," Dent said. "The V-22 is making a significant difference in the way Marine aviation provides medium lift assault support to our Marines on the ground and we could not be more pleased."

Among the issues being closely watched is the Osprey's ability to withstand an attack of ground fire and respond. The aircraft now only has a rear-mounted machine gun but the service is working with the manufacturer, Boeing and Bell Helicopter, to install a second, forward-mounted gun and working on a remote-controlled turret gun.

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To date, the Marine Corps has received more than 52 Ospreys from the manufacturer as it moves to replace its fleet of Vietnam-era helicopters.

The service has ordered more than 360 Ospreys for combat assault and support missions, and the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command is buying about 50.

So far this is good news for the Marine Corps which has invested heavily in the Osprey. The story indicates that it is unlikely that the craft has been engaged in any hostile combat operations to date. One did have some mechanical issues in trasit to Anbar from its ship but it was able to get repairs and continue.