Japan Press Weekly

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2019 November 13 - 19 [US FORCES]

USMC MV-22 Ospreys considered high crash risk as serious flaw remains untouched: DoD watchdog report

Akahata on November 18 learned that an auditing report for the U.S. Department of Defense pointed out that a serious flaw in the Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft remains although it can lead to a crash.

Ospreys carry a risk of crashing from a loss of power due to the imperfect combustion design of engines that have the potential of drawing in dirt and sand stirred up by the strong downdraft during take-offs and landings.

This indicates that the implementation of measures to control intake of dirt and sand is vital for the vertical takeoff and landing tiltrotor aircraft Osprey as shown in the following cases: In 2010, a U.S. Air Force CV-22 crashed in Afghanistan due to trouble with its engine filter. In 2016, an MV-22 Osprey crashed in Hawaii because of the engine stall produced from the failure to filter out mineral particles.

According to the DoD watchdog report, in 2010, the development of a vacuum filtration system, known as the Engine Air Particle Separators (EAPS), for the Osprey was commissioned. However, an EAPS which fully protects the Osprey engines from various types of particles has yet to be developed. Nevertheless, the U.S. military continues to operate MV-22 Ospreys in sandy locations.

The report also pointed out that Osprey engines that are even equipped with the latest version of the EAPS intake sand four times more than the acceptable level. Stating that nine years of efforts to improve the EAPS failed to decrease risks of V-22 Osprey crashes, the report concluded that it “cannot be certain” that long-standing problems with the Osprey aircraft will be corrected.

Meanwhile, in Japan, the government intends to deploy the crash-prone tiltrotor aircraft Ospreys with the Self-Defense Forces under the pretext of disaster preparedness. However, the use of the aircraft in a disaster-affected area covered with debris will present serious safety hazards.

Past related article:
> Osprey useless for disaster relief activities[May 9, 2015]