PICTURES: MV-22 tiltrotor makes Illustrious debut on UK carrier

www.flightglobal.com ^ | 12/07/07 | Craig Hoyle

[Freeport]

A Bell Boeing MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor transport from the US Marine Corps' VMX-22 test squadron has made history by performing the type's first landing aboard a non-US vessel, touching down on the UK Royal Navy's strike carrier HMS Illustrious on 10 July.

[Weeedley]

I bet the limeys had all the fire extinguishers on board maned and ready.

[Gay State Conservative]

Is this the aircraft that some within the military have suggested will prove to be a dangerous flop?

[ASA Vet]

It'll never work.

(That must be true, I heard it many years of from self professed experts here on FR.)

[farlander]

Wellll... it had a few... erm... setbacks. Pilot error, assuredly. So it’s understandable there were those who doubted it.

[NucSubs]

Don’t know about that.

But I do know two non-active Marines who say its a death trap.

[Weeedley]

That “mission” it has already accomplished. Cost to taxpayers about $30 billions.

[rightwingextremist1776]

The first one that went in was because of a computer error, so it wasn’t all pilot error. The second one was pilot error. I knew the pilot on that one, he came from the C130 community. Attempted to land with a little too much sink rate.

[fredhead]

Must have been successful. Illustrious is sitting at a pier at Naval Station Norfolk right now.

Man, is it small for a carrier. One of the Nimitz class carriers is at the next pier.

[r9etb]

I saw one of these a couple of months back. It flew directly overhead. Really cool in terms of both looks and the sound it made.

[e_castillo]

Great pics. Thanks.

Here’s a little article for the nay sayers.

[e_castillo]

Ooops...

http://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/archive/story.asp?STORY_ID=460

[Bob]

Man, is it small for a carrier. One of the Nimitz class carriers is at the next pier.

I'd think that anything would look small sitting next to a Nimitz-class carrier. :=)

[VOA]

bump

[ASA Vet]

Just to play it safe, we must ground and discard any new plane which has had an incident no matter what its cause. It’s the only way to be sure.

[fredhead]

You have a point there.

4 1/2 acres of sovreign US territory; where it’s needed, when it’s needed.

98,000 tons of diplomacy.

Those are the captions of two posters I have at home that were produced by Northrop Grumman Newport News, the shipyard that builds our aircraft carriers.

I served on three of the carriers; two nukes, Nimitz and Eisenhower; and the last conventional, John F. Kennedy.

After 6 months at sea, even these ships can seem small.

[ASA Vet]

Did you ever find the bowling alley?

[Bob]

After 6 months at sea, even these ships can seem small.

You should try a DDG. :=) They not only seem small, they are small. (And that happens after 6 hours rather than 6 months.)

[magslinger]

After 6 months at sea, even these ships can seem small.

A carrier can look mighty small after thirty minutes at sea. If those thirty minutes are spent on a COD.

[magslinger]

SONOBUOY PING!

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