Navy V-22 Variant Info & Questions

[JTurse]

Somebody posted a question in the old forum regarding the Navy's V-22 variant. According to Jane's, It will be designated the HV-22. The plan is to procure 48 and mission will be CSAR, SpecWar support, and logistics.

An article came up a couple of months ago in "Proceedings" regarding escorting the V-22. Anybody see any problems with escorting other than me and the author of that piece? What do we escort the V-22 with--helos, fixed wing? An AV-22? Anybody got ideas?


JT

 

[Tripp]

Steven Coonts (Author of "Flight of the Intruder" and a retired Naval Aviator), has written a new book called "Cuba." In it, he escorts the V-22 with AH-1W Super Cobras for close-in fire support/infantry suppression and the Hornets and Tomcats are patrolling the "perimeter" to keep the eager beavers in MiGs away.

Now granted, this battle took place in Cuba and most of this firepower was deployed from Getmo. For a long-range mission, I don't think the Super Cobras could keep up (cruise speed of the V-22: 275 kts; the top speed of the AH-1W is 160 kts--you do the math). The only thing that could keep up and hover with an Osprey is another Osprey. An Osprey gunship, perhaps?

 

[JTurse]

An Osprey gunship: the AV-22 could match the speed and flight parameters of the MV/HV-22. Yet, with the tilting design, where would it carry ordnance? Maybe the resurrection of the OV-10 or another high speed turboprop with the range, the ordnance, the loiter ability, and the speed? I think we will see an evolution of the Osprey into an attack variant; just trying to figure how it would happen. If we fail to support it in complementary way, we're left with an aircraft that's not much good, and certainly can't be used in the manner intended

 

[OracleMSU]

Yeah, I was the one asking originally about the V-22 in the Navy. I read on Bell Helicopter TEXTRON that it was going to be a special ops aircraft (probably ferrying SEALs around) and there were going to be 48, like the post above. I was thinking, albeit that it would require a joint mission, but how about some Airforce A-10 tank killers. They are slow and VERY manueverable. They don't have the range of the V-22, but have a greater range the the hornets (last I heard). Seems like it might be a good alternative, as the A-10 was designed to surpress the enemy on the ground, and has sidewinders to get those enemy helos out of the way. Some strictly air superiority fighters may be a good choise as well.

All I have to say about the A-10 is the Avenger cannon, Ka-BOOM goes the tank .

Anyway, that's my two cents, wheres my change?


-----OracleMSU----------
"Give me ambiguity or give me something else."

 

[Phoenix]

Turse, you don´t know where it can carry ordnance? Maybe you should try the belly, like the "Spectre", which doesn´t carry weapons on its wings. It could probably replace it, since it can take-off from a carrier, something that the "Spectre" can´t do.

DEATH FROM ABOVE!

 

[Gatordev]

I know that there are several options they are looking at. I think the article you saw was written by Jay Stout, author of Hornets Over Kuwait (good read).

He was advacating a replacement for the OV-10, which would be a turbo-prop psuedo-version of the Grumman, ah damn, can't remember the name, but it was a twin WWII fighter.

Or maybe I'm just making this all up. But I remember an article like the one your talking about.

Devin