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osprey escort
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Getting the OV-10 on and off the big deck amphibs may be a bit of an issue. IMHO, an Osprey escort needs to deploy with the Osprey which means LHA/LHD compatibility at a minimum. OV-10's have flown off LHD's in the past but the payload is limited due to the flight deck length. Landing back onboard requires some kind of arresting gear as well. Big $$$ to retrofit to the boats.
On a hot day with a normal ordnance load (12 5" Zunis, 19 2.75", SUU-11 minigun, 4 M-60s with ammo, and flares for night ops) we had trouble waddling down the 6,000+ foot runway at Binh Thuy and getting airborne. Don't even think about a deck launch off an LHA/LHD. You could do it with an empty bird, but what good would it do?
There's all sorts of groovy hardware that could do the job. Realistically, though, the military is cutting the number and types of aircraft out there, not adding them. That means a combination of R/W coverage in the objective for short-range missions and F/W coverage for longer-range stuff.
I wish we could've put off the Y/Z buy a few years so that we could take advantage of the high-speed rotorcraft developments taking place, e.g. X-49 Speedhawk, Sikorsky X-2, and Eurocopter X-3, but that "train has already sailed," so to speak.
And just so it's clear, if someone posts about the A-10 here, I'm going to bust a cap in their ass.
I wish we could've put off the Y/Z buy a few years so that we could take advantage of the high-speed rotorcraft developments taking place, e.g. X-49 Speedhawk, Sikorsky X-2, and Eurocopter X-3, but that "train has already sailed," so to speak.
And just so it's clear, if someone posts about the A-10 here, I'm going to bust a cap in their ass.
???
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aero_A.10
Seems it's been out of production for 80 years but I dunno... maybe let pilots do IA tours to fly it. Probably only take guys with biplane experience though
???
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aero_A.10
Seems it's been out of production for 80 years but I dunno... maybe let pilots do IA tours to fly it. Probably only take guys with biplane experience though
Seriously?
I just threw that out because some douche always says "The Marines should have gotten the A-10," whenever this topic comes up.
About the only new aircraft we'll get for this will be a UAV.
Watercooler "talk," maybe.
There was the experiment with turboprops supporting special warfare with CAS a little while back. That's where some of that might have started. There's no serious discussion of the USMC buying another airframe for this role. In today's budget environment, I wouldn't expect anything of that nature to go beyond a point paper or Gazette article shoved in a drawer somewhere.
There was the experiment with turboprops supporting special warfare with CAS a little while back. That's where some of that might have started. There's no serious discussion of the USMC buying another airframe for this role. In today's budget environment, I wouldn't expect anything of that nature to go beyond a point paper or Gazette article shoved in a drawer somewhere.
If only we had a jet that could operate from amphibs and do CAS, or escort ospreys.
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Milita...-22-Osprey-rescued-a-downed-US-pilot-in-Libya
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Milita...-22-Osprey-rescued-a-downed-US-pilot-in-Libya
I know, I know, I was making light of exactly that... cue the "fouled into the stands" / "doing!" sound effect for my joke. And smileys
Malo83
Keep the Faith
Funny you mention that. There was a Gazette article a few months back trying to pitch the OV-10 as a new AC for us to buy and one of his arguments was the need for a good escort for the Osprey. He had a pretty sound arguement and while the Bronco is definately cool, I agree with you. With Defense quickly becoming the congressional whipping boy for the economy, there is no way that we could talk our way into buying a new aircraft right now.
Maybe I'm missing something, but wouldn't an ideal Osprey escort be able to land on our small deck carriers that could move around with the Ospreys? If not on the same ship, at least one in the same group. Wouldn't that escort be the Harrier? Or possibly a F/A-18 from a big carrier or from land based Marines? I don't see any of these prop based airplanes being a better option than what we have now.
For quick reaction stuff it might be ideal to have them with the group, but chances are with a dicey situation you might also have a big carrier or land based Marine Hornets so I wouldn't be sold on a new airframe either. Heck, I met a Marine test pilot and squadron commander once who was a Harrier dude. He loved the airplane, but thought that more gunships and Hornets was a better way to spend money than on STOVL. When I was doing SODO for Iraq a few years ago it was rather sad what the Harriers could bring to the fight. For close up stuff they are fantastic, but their range and ordnance load is paltry for most of what we have been doing for the last decade. With budget cuts coming it is very much a "what have you done for me lately" mindset.
For quick reaction stuff it might be ideal to have them with the group, but chances are with a dicey situation you might also have a big carrier or land based Marine Hornets so I wouldn't be sold on a new airframe either. Heck, I met a Marine test pilot and squadron commander once who was a Harrier dude. He loved the airplane, but thought that more gunships and Hornets was a better way to spend money than on STOVL. When I was doing SODO for Iraq a few years ago it was rather sad what the Harriers could bring to the fight. For close up stuff they are fantastic, but their range and ordnance load is paltry for most of what we have been doing for the last decade. With budget cuts coming it is very much a "what have you done for me lately" mindset.