bobdina
06-25-2009, 10:23 AM
Lawmaker: Time to put Osprey out of its misery
By Amy McCullough - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Jun 24, 2009 21:07:31 EDT
The chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee recommended Tuesday that the production of all MV-22 Ospreys be halted, saying that after more than two decades the hybrid aircraft still can’t complete the missions for which it was designed.
“It’s time to put the Osprey out of its misery, and time to put the taxpayers out of their miseries,” Rep. Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y., said following testimony on Capitol Hill from leading Marine aviation officials, representatives of the Government Accountability Office and defense analysts. Towns said he plans to present his recommendation to the House Appropriations Committee.
His comments come after the release Tuesday of a scathing report from the GAO questioning the Osprey’s ability to operate in Afghanistan and on Navy ships. Moreover, the program’s research, development, test and evaluation costs soared more than 200 percent — from $4.2 billion to $12.7 billion — between 1986 and 2007, according to the report, which notes also that the cost to procure the aircraft has jumped from $34.4 billion to $42.6 billion, even though the total buy has dropped from nearly 1,000 aircraft to less than 500.
And while its three consecutive deployments to Iraq prove the Osprey can complete its mission, “challenges may limit its ability to accomplish the full repertoire of missions of the legacy helicopters it is replacing,” the report says.
Marine officials staunchly defended the aircraft, saying it has the ability to save lives by flying high above the threats that insurgents and traditional combat weapons present.
The GAO report makes several observations, including:
• The Corps has been forced to “cannibalize” its MV-22s and the Osprey production line because parts wear out much quicker than anticipated.
• The aircraft lacks an integrated weapon system capable of suppressing threats while approaching a landing zone.
• The Osprey’s size prohibits it from fully using all the deck spots aboard Navy ships, and its “large inventory” of spare parts takes up too much room on the hangar deck space.
Retired Lt. Col. Dakota Wood, senior fellow for the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, has suggested the Corps reconsider its plan to replace all of its CH-46E Sea Knight and CH-53D Sea Stallions and consider a mixed fleet instead.
“A mixed medium-lift fleet composed of MV-22s and a new helicopter would provide more options and increased flexibility for the service at less cost than a fleet composed only of MV-22s,” Wood said. http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2009/06/marine_osprey_afghanistan_062309/
By Amy McCullough - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Jun 24, 2009 21:07:31 EDT
The chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee recommended Tuesday that the production of all MV-22 Ospreys be halted, saying that after more than two decades the hybrid aircraft still can’t complete the missions for which it was designed.
“It’s time to put the Osprey out of its misery, and time to put the taxpayers out of their miseries,” Rep. Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y., said following testimony on Capitol Hill from leading Marine aviation officials, representatives of the Government Accountability Office and defense analysts. Towns said he plans to present his recommendation to the House Appropriations Committee.
His comments come after the release Tuesday of a scathing report from the GAO questioning the Osprey’s ability to operate in Afghanistan and on Navy ships. Moreover, the program’s research, development, test and evaluation costs soared more than 200 percent — from $4.2 billion to $12.7 billion — between 1986 and 2007, according to the report, which notes also that the cost to procure the aircraft has jumped from $34.4 billion to $42.6 billion, even though the total buy has dropped from nearly 1,000 aircraft to less than 500.
And while its three consecutive deployments to Iraq prove the Osprey can complete its mission, “challenges may limit its ability to accomplish the full repertoire of missions of the legacy helicopters it is replacing,” the report says.
Marine officials staunchly defended the aircraft, saying it has the ability to save lives by flying high above the threats that insurgents and traditional combat weapons present.
The GAO report makes several observations, including:
• The Corps has been forced to “cannibalize” its MV-22s and the Osprey production line because parts wear out much quicker than anticipated.
• The aircraft lacks an integrated weapon system capable of suppressing threats while approaching a landing zone.
• The Osprey’s size prohibits it from fully using all the deck spots aboard Navy ships, and its “large inventory” of spare parts takes up too much room on the hangar deck space.
Retired Lt. Col. Dakota Wood, senior fellow for the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, has suggested the Corps reconsider its plan to replace all of its CH-46E Sea Knight and CH-53D Sea Stallions and consider a mixed fleet instead.
“A mixed medium-lift fleet composed of MV-22s and a new helicopter would provide more options and increased flexibility for the service at less cost than a fleet composed only of MV-22s,” Wood said. http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2009/06/marine_osprey_afghanistan_062309/