The Osprey That Would Not Die

While watching the birds at the feeder this morning, I heard what I thought was a jet flying over.  That is not unusual in itself as I live just north of the glide path to Midland International Airport.  What was unusual was that it was taking far too long for the “jet” to fly beyond my hearing range.  I began searching the sky for the jet.  Instead, I spotted a rather strange looking propeller-driven aircraft.  Deciding that could not be the source of the jet engine noise I clearly heard, I continued looking for a passing jet plane.  There just were not any jets in sight.  That’s when I took a much closer look at the strangely shaped aircraft.  Was that a…could it be…yes, it was an Osprey! I had never seen one in flight except once on television.  Honestly, I thought the Osprey aircraft development program had been canned by the Government back in the early nineties. Obviously I was wrong, for there she flew.

As I watched this strange yet mighty aircraft fade from view, I thought back to all the news I remembered about the Osprey Program.  From what I could recall off the cuff, the development of the Osprey had been marred with much cost overrun, and more importantly, great loss of human life.  Several test pilots had been killed in flight accidents, with many of the accidents occurring in flights that barely left the runway.  One accident, in the later stages of Osprey program claimed nineteen lives.  Brave men lost to an aircraft that many believed would never be practical.

I also recalled that many senators and congressmen had called for the Osprey program to be dismantled so that losses in men and material could be cut.  Unfortunately, as with many such programs, the corporations developing the aircraft or other weapon and the military officials or politicians pushing these programs manage to keep the programs running, even when lives are at stake and costs are far beyond those originally budgeted.  Sometimes the military command itself does not want such a program continued, but these programs just seem to hang on.

In the nineties, possibly even in the eighties, many people close to the Osprey Program had declared the vehicle too unsafe to fly. By 2013, however, a group of Marines known as Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadrons had been equipped with the latest version of the Osprey.  Some of the pilots report that the Osprey is no more dangerous than are conventional helicopters. Now active fighting Tiltrotor Squadrons are stationed in the US and in war theaters around the world, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact, a total of twelve squadrons are equipped with Ospreys, as are a transport squadron and training squadron.  And the Marines are currently engaged in replacing their Sea Knight helicopter fleet with Ospreys.

In what appears to be a complete turnaround in Osprey safety and capability, these aircraft are capable of carrying twice as many soldiers and equipment as the helicopters they have replaced, with a similar flight safety record.  Additionally, they can fly three times as fast and nearly twice as high as conventional helicopters.  Currently, the cost of one Osprey is just over $122 million dollars.  Some say this cost is too high, considering that the aircraft is vulnerable to the harsh desert climate as well as to missile attack.  Supporters point out that the Osprey can do more than the vehicles it is replacing, thus is worth the extra cost.  Marines who operate or fly in these aircraft have come to believe that the Osprey is not only safe, but has proven itself a valuable asset in the ongoing desert wars overseas.

I am glad that our service men and women are safer now in the Osprey.  I have to wonder about our military/industrial complex, though.  I wonder at what cost in dollars of budgetary overrun will a weapons development program be cancelled.  Even more, I have to wonder how many of our soldiers the Government will allow to perish until such a program is finally deemed unsafe. Apparently the Osprey Program, with its huge cost overruns and loss of human life, never reached that point.