"I guess the redesign is due the terrible experiences of the rotating engines on the V-22. After so many fatalities they reduced the vulnerability of the engine to ground-strikes but the lack of ground clearance is still a concern to operators and the jet efflux is less than ideal too. This design (if it works) looks much more appropriate for an aircraft you plan to land in the dark, on uneven terrain in a threat environment.
The internal bomb-bay looks interesting"
Excuse me, but exactly which crashes were due to the fact that the engines rotate? Which fatalities were caused by engine ground strikes?
Regarding the number of fatalities, the V-22 has had, the number is due to the fact that it can carry a lot of people, whereas say, an Apache carries two. Over half of all Osprey fatalties happened in one accident, and two accidents were responsible for over 70% of the fatalties.
The internal storage of missle launchers is probably partially to reduce drag at higher speeds. Sikorsky's concept of an X2 gunship a while back also showed internal storage of Hellfires.
Oh, don't call it a bomb bay. I believe one of the AF insisted-upon agreements regarding Roles and Missions mandates that Army helos can not drop bombs.
Last edited by Commando Cody; 18th Apr 2013 at 05:29.