Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey

The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey is a unique military aircraft that features both vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and short takeoff and landing (STOL) capabilities, allowing it to combine the functionality of a conventional helicopter with the long-range, high-speed cruise performance of a turboprop aircraft.

The V-22 Osprey was developed in response to the failure of Operation Eagle Claw during the Iran hostage crisis in 1980, which highlighted the need for a military aircraft that could take off and land vertically and carry combat troops at high speed. This led to the initiation of the Joint-service Vertical take-off/landing Experimental (JVX) program in 1981, which aimed to create an innovative transport aircraft with long-range, high-speed, and vertical-takeoff capabilities.

A development contract for the V-22 tiltrotor aircraft was awarded to the Bell Boeing team in 1983, and the V-22 first flew in 1989. However, the complexity of being the first tiltrotor for military service led to many years of development and design alterations.

The United States Marine Corps (USMC) began crew training for the MV-22B Osprey in 2000 and fielded it in 2007, replacing their Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knights. The U.S. Air Force (USAF) fielded its version of the tiltrotor, the CV-22B, in 2009. Since entering service with the Marine Corps and Air Force, Osprey has been deployed in transportation and medevac operations over Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Kuwait.

The USMC has a defining mission of performing an amphibious landing, and the service quickly became interested in the JVX program. Recognizing that a concentrated force was vulnerable to a single nuclear weapon, the USMC sought airborne solutions with good speed and range that allowed for rapid dispersal. Without a replacement, the USMC and Army merging was a lingering threat, akin to President Truman's proposal following World War II.

The JVX program combined requirements from the USMC, USAF, Army, and Navy, and contractors were encouraged to form teams. Bell Helicopter partnered with Boeing Vertol to submit a proposal for an enlarged version of the Bell XV-15 prototype on 17 February 1983, and a preliminary design contract was awarded on 26 April 1983.

The JVX aircraft was designated V-22 Osprey on 15 January 1985, and by that March, the first six prototypes were being produced, and Boeing Vertol was expanded to handle the workload. Work was split evenly between Bell and Boeing. Bell Helicopter manufactures and integrates the wing, nacelles, rotors, drive system, tail surfaces, and aft ramp, as well as integrates the Rolls-Royce engines and performs final assembly. Boeing Helicopters manufactures and integrates the fuselage, cockpit, avionics, and flight controls.

The USMC variant received the MV-22 designation, and the USAF variant received the CV-22. This was reversed from normal procedure to prevent USMC Ospreys from having a conflicting CV designation with aircraft carriers. Full-scale development began in 1986, and on 3 May 1986, Bell Boeing was awarded a US$1.714 billion contract for the V-22 by the U.S. Navy. At this point, all four U.S. military services had acquisition plans for the V-22.

The first V-22 was publicly rolled out in May 1988. That year, the U.S. Army left the program, citing a need to focus its budget on more immediate aviation programs. In 1989, the V-22 survived two separate Senate votes that could have resulted in cancellation. Despite the Senate's decision, the Department of Defense instructed the Navy not to spend more money on the V-22. As development cost projections greatly increased in 1988, Defense Secretary Dick Cheney tried to defund it from 1989 to 1992, but was overruled by Congress, which provided unrequested program funding. Multiple studies of alternatives found the V-22 provided more capability and effectiveness with similar operating costs. The Clinton Administration was supportive of the V-22, helping it attain funding.