THIS is a sight you’ve never seen before – a US Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey preparing to touch down on the flight deck of a foreign warship – in this case HMS Illustrious.
Osprey is the world’s first tilt-rotor aircraft – it can land, take-off and hover like a helicopter, but once airborne can fly like a traditional propeller-driven aircraft at speeds over 300mph and heights above 25,000ft.
Osprey has had a drawn-out and, admittedly, checkered history, but it can carry more troops faster and further into battle than the US Marine Corps’ traditional CH46 Sea Knight helicopters.
Lusty’s flight deck was understandably packed with crew eager to see this rather ungainly bird land ahead of the Joint Task Exercise involving three carrier task groups off the east coast of the US, one led by Illustrious.
There are no plans yet by Whitehall to buy or operate the Osprey from British warships – but given the UK’s global operations alongside the USA, the ability to fly the Osprey from RN carriers is a capability well worth investing, especially as the Marine Corps are likely to deploy Osprey overseas for the first time later this year. |
