John,
Thanks so much for coming back. As ever, an elegant and understandable answer.
My guess is that at some time in the near future the USMC will take a long hard look at the ski jump for the L class ships to generate more payload per launch for F-35 - if V-22 can use that as well, then the deal should be done.
They are building a ramp at Pax for the F-35 - watch out for V-22 activity off it. That would be a clue....
Best regards as ever to those brilliant people who think of ideas like the Harrier, the V-22 and the ski jump,
Engines