V-22 Experiences Dual-Engine Interruptions in Cloud
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POGO (the Project On Government Oversight) aren’t anti-military; there are some weapons programs they like and have defended, and they’ve been willing to change their minds based on favorable reviews from the troops. The V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft isn’t one of those systems, however. POGO believes the aircraft has numerous important operational deficiencies, has sucked up immense amounts of development dollars that could have been better spent on other projects, and offers a cost/airlift ratio that is far inferior to available helicopter options with performance gains that are less than advertised. The PRV-22 variant bowed out of the CSAR-X combat search and rescue competition, while its HV-22 variant was quietly declined by the US Navy in favour of the MH-60S.
Recently, POGO criticized the Osprey’s Operational Evaluation (OpEval) tests, accusing them of deliberately leaving out important threats and performance requirements in order to create a passing grade for full rate production. Now POGO reports that a V-22 experienced a double engine stall while flying through a cloud, and claims that de-icing has been neglected during the Osprey’s tests. See POGO’s blog article with links to previous reports, and its press release with more details regarding this incident. A Reuters news article report added more details.
UPDATE: V-22 program office spokesman James Darcy responded to DID’s questions over the next few days, resulting in a follow-up article that suggests POGO and Reuters may have got a few things wrong: V-22’s “Cloud Stall” Not a Stall At All (subsequent materials expanded and moved to follow-up article).
