Osprey Gets Gatlin Guns

Air Force Times:

Special Operations Command and the Marine Corps remain on track to install all-quadrant 7.62mm Gatling guns underneath seven Air Force Special Operations Command CV-22 Ospreys in 2009, officials said.

The 413th Flight Test Squadron is testing the turret-mounted gun at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. It has passed a series of tests including firing from a hover in August, said Dave Adamiak, a BAE Systems official.

Requirements officials chose not to install a forward-firing gun on the Osprey at the beginning of its two-decade-long development to cut costs. A ramp-mounted .30-caliber machine gun was installed instead.

...

Marine versions of the Osprey will also have a forward-firing gun, but the interim weapons systems will be installed only on AFSOC birds.

But, “once the gun is qualified, the Marine Corps will determine how to best deploy the gun on the MV-22,” Marine Corps aviation spokesman Maj. Eric Dent said.

CV-22 flight engineers will fire the gun with what looks like a PlayStation controller while viewing targets on a screen that is fed images from a color camera and forward-looking infrared sensor.

Having the screen in the back will also help the special operations teams get a better idea of the situation on the ground, Adamiak said.

...

The screens should also increase the situational awareness of the crew and the forces debarking. While I have found the aircraft to have exceptional capabilities, the absence of a forward firing gun has always been troubling. With the guns and the video it is a significant improvement.

BTW, I noticed that similar video screens are now available on the latest trucks to help in hooking trailers to the hitch.

Hat tip to Graham.

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