The MH-47E...fanciest version and equivalent to the CSAR version of the Osprey goes off the lot for about 40 Million Dollars vice the 105 million Dollar price tag of the Osprey. Price creep is bound to happen on the Osprey....so we can assume about a 3:1 ratio of top line Chinooks for the price of one Osprey based upon purchase price alone. The Sea Stallion would be about the same price....and again about a 3:1 advantage in numbers.
In the first six months of the war against terrorism, Night Stalker Chinooks flew more than 200 combat missions totaling about 2,000 flight hours. The Chinooks flew as high as 16,000 feet (which forced crews to use oxygen systems) for as long as 15 hours. More than 70 of these missions, flown in the war's first three months, involved infiltration or removal of special operations troops behind enemy lines. Throughout, the Chinooks maintained a 99-percent mission readiness rate.
Again...know where my vote goes....sorry Bell....no Osprey for this guy.
Last edited by SASless; 14th Jul 2005 at 23:49.