The V-22 Osprey ’s mechanical and aeronautical defect have been well - documented . That ’s why , for its third - contemporaries tiltrotor , Bell has take on a effective severe look at the ill - fated aircraft ( one it helped design ) and built the airplane - copter cross it should have back in 1983 .
Dubbed the V-280 Valor , Bell ’s unexampled tiltrotor aircraft bears a close resemblance to the sr. V-22 , which Bell teamed with Boeing to design and build for the US military beginning in the early 1980s . It ’s reportedly a bit lowly than the V-22 but still magnanimous than the UH-60 Black Hawk eggbeater that the US Army hopes it will substitute by 2030 .
Should the Valor platform make it to participating duty , its four - person crew will be able-bodied to ferry up to 14 fully - equip soldiers up to 800 nautical miles at speeds pass 350 mph — that ’s double the range and f number of current - gen chopper . It can also flee one - way routes up to 2100 nmi , give up them to be effectively “ self - deployable”—there ’s no need to pack them up in the bellies of C-17s for transcontinental transport . And with the addition of two underbelly slings , the V-280 will be able to run up up to 10,000 pound of supply , vehicles , and equipment as well .
The V-280 , despite appearances , operate very other than than its harbinger . The V-22 rotate its entire propulsion gathering — its railway locomotive , rotors , everything — when transition between perpendicular and horizontal escape . That make performance issues since doing so requires much more power and control to accomplish because you ’ve got all this supernumerary locomotive weight shifting around the vehicle as it ’s attempting to hover with some color of stability . The V-280 , on the other bridge player , keep the engines where they should be : in fix positions out at the end of the wings with only the rotors and hinged driveshafts swivel back and forth . This not only makes the aircraft much promiscuous to check during passage , it should importantly increase its fuel efficiency equate to the V-22 and cater the V-280 with around five time the coverage expanse of current MEDEVAC whirlybird .
The V-280 made its public entry at AUSA 2014 in Washington DC earlier this hebdomad . Bell official expect the Valor to be ready for flight testing by September 2017 . [ Defense Update – Bell1,2 – Wiki ]
Image : Bell Helicopters
UPDATE : And now a reaction from Bell Helicopter Military Communications Manager , Andrew Woodward :
The V-22 is the safe aircraft mesh by the USMC and since being deploy in 2007 has achieved undischarged missionary work success in deployments to Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf . The Osprey offers operators a full spectrum of mission capability , include maraud , Casualty Evacuation ( CASEVAC ) , Tactical Recovery of Aircraft and Personnel ( TRAP ) , Humanitarian Assistance / Disaster Relief ( HA / DR ) , resupply , very important person transport , and theater security measures cooperation .
From the recently - put out Marine Aviation Plan 2015 : “ In the years ahead , the Osprey will rest the nation ’s crisis response political platform of choice in support of the ‘ new normal . ’ The V-22 has without question proven its Charles Frederick Worth by transforming rotorcraft mathematical operation across the globe . The operational grasp and versatility of this remarkable platform has create tactical and strategic option where there previously were none . Building on this winner is key to ensure the platforms relevancy and capability for the future strength . ”
At the Tailhook reunion this year , Lt . Gen Jon Davis , deputy commander of aviation for the USMC , said merely that the V-22 is the most in - need aircraft in the Marine Corps .
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