Image source: topwar.ru
The entire fleet of American V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft was temporarily decommissioned after an incident last month at Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico involving one of the vehicles assigned to the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC).
According to AFSOC, Osprey was on a training mission at the airbase on November 20 when a "technical glitch" occurred, which forced the four-man crew to make an emergency landing. The command does not know anything about injuries or external damage to the car.
During the flight, the crew began to "receive automatic instructions on the need for an immediate landing."
- noted in AFSOC.
This refers to the disaster on November 29, 2023, which killed all eight people on board the CV-22, which was off the coast of Japan. A subsequent investigation revealed that the cause of the crash was "the failure of one of the convertiplane gearboxes" (due to a crack in the gear and the destruction of the bearing) and "inadequate decisions made by the pilot."
AFSOC said it was too early to talk about a new discovery of a material defect.
After last year's disaster, the entire fleet of American Osprey tiltrotor aircraft finally received permission to fly in March this year. Since December 6, they have been banned from taking to the air again.
Image source: topwar.ru
Since the first flight of the Osprey in 1989, more than 400 copies have been delivered to the Marines, Air Force and Navy, as well as to the Japanese Self-Defense Forces, which are the only operator of this machine outside the United States. KMP is by far the largest user: about 348 MV-22B units are distributed across 17 squadrons. AFSOC has about 50 of them, and the Navy has 36 sides.
As indicated in the publication Naval Technology, at the end of November, some American lawmakers called on the Pentagon to suspend flights of the entire V-22 Osprey fleet until the ongoing problems related to the safety of its operation are resolved:
The lawmakers also insist that the Ministry of Defense publish a report containing conclusions and recommendations to address the chronic problems of the V-22.
- it is said in the US press.
