After 18 controversial and occasionally chaotic years in development, with costs surpassing $20 Billion, the V-22 Osprey heads to Iraq in September, entering combat for the first time. US military leaders call this an historic moment. And the Military Channel goes with the Marines and the Osprey to make an exclusive documentary on the first Osprey squadron to fly in harm’s way.
The aircraft, which is intended to replace the US Marine Corps' 40-year-old fleet of CH-46 helicopters, can fly like a plane and land like a helicopter, giving the Marines more flexibility in the field. The V-22 can carry troops three times as far, twice as fast and has six to seven times more survivability than the CH-46 widely used now in Iraq, the military says.
"It's been through extensive operational testing and evaluation, and it is our fervent feeling that this aircraft is the most capable, survivable aircraft that we carry our most important weapon system in, which is the Marine or rifleman, and that we will successfully introduce this aircraft in combat," said Lt. Gen. John G. Castellaw, deputy commandant for aviation. How well it will fare in the harsh reality of warfare is yet to be seen. The answers will be revealed in this documentary.
