U.S. Osprey aircraft makes emergency landing at Amami airport

These incidents have further heightened the concerns of many residents of Okinawa, which hosts the bulk of U.S. forces in Japan, over the safety of Osprey aircraft, whose tilt-rotor props enable them to land and takeoff like a helicopter yet fly like an airplane once airborne.

Some, yes, and give credit where credit is due...the pilot made a smart decision and landed safely.

Incidents happen, and these pilots are pro's.

Osprey should be banned from flying over the residential area and town. If the Osprey aircraft has flying only over sea and then public do not need to worry about Osprey aircraft crashing on residential area.

 Also I was wondering the manufacturer couldn't find problem and fix Osprey aircraft problem. Osprey aircraft was deemed to be unsafe to fly.

The true test of an aircraft's capability is its combat record. After the Pentagon fixed the problems that caused the crashes during development, the Osprey went into combat, where its record has proved to be remarkably safe. The Osprey has logged more than 100,000 flight hours in some of the most inhospitable conditions imaginable with a safety record that's actually considered the safest among Marine Corps rotorcraft. There has been only one fatal crash: In 2010 an Air Force CV-22 touched down short of its landing zone in Afghanistan, hit a ditch, and flipped, killing four. Until this week, that was the aircraft's only fatal accident in the past decade. By comparison, since 2001 six CH-46 Sea Knight helos (the maritime version of the Chinook, which the Osprey is replacing) have crashed, killing 20.

Safety has not been a problem with the Osprey, but maintenance certainly has. A report late last year by the Pentagon's Department of Operational Test and Evaluation said that from June 2007 to May 2010, the Marine Corps' Osprey mission-capable readiness was only 53 percent. For an aircraft that costs more than $100 million, that's unacceptable.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/a7663/how-safe-is-the-mv-22-osprey-8036684/

I think this paints a more detailed and accurate picture.

Osprey, nicknamed the "widow maker."

Care to come up with something original?

BertieWooser: someone die here? How about there numerous SDF crafts that have crashed recently in drills or on rescue calls? What would you call them since in those cases people actually died?

People in Japan need to get off his "Osprey Fixation". Very soon there will be JGSDF Ospreys in operation. And the J-media need to get off this treating any unscheduled safe landing on an airport runway with no injuries or damage as "news".

Some, yes, and give credit where credit is due...the pilot made a smart decision and landed safely.

Incidents happen, and these pilots are pro's.

Great comment. Glad they were safe.

Could not agree with bass4funk more, and will add that aircraft commanders/captains make precautionary landings quite often.  Only reason you are reading about this one is because it happened at a civil airport.

In the face of mounting anti-U.S. base sentiments incurred by the 1995 rape incident, Tokyo and Washington announced the closing of the Futenma Air Station as a measure, to reportedly reduce Okinawa’s base-hosting .burden. In later years the central government specified more concretely the reasons why Futenma must be relocated to Henoko were: (1) to eliminate the danger posed by the current site which is located in a densely populated residential area; (2) the deterrence capability Futenma has must be maintained the same as ever.

It seems the Marine authorities knew from the Osprey's development stage that the Futenma Air Station would not satisfy safety conditions for accident-prone aircraft, so that relocating Futenma to Henoko must have been a fait accompli already in the 1990's. In September 1997, the Marine Corps Times reported the Marines' plan to deploy 38 Ospreys to a sea base at Henoko, Okinawa.

It was on October 1, 2012, 15 years later after the announcement of their Okinawa deployment had been made, that the first contingent of 6 Ospreys arrived at Futenma despite Okinawa's vehement opposition to their deployment because of their checkered safety records.

Already, the rumor of Osprey's faulty safety record seems to have been proved, true to their bad reputation.

Here are accidents involving Futenma-based Ospreys since December last year:

Dec. 2016      Crash-landed on shallow waters off Abu village, in Nago City.

June 2017      Emergency landing at Iejima Auxiliary Air Field because of an engine-trouble alarm signal

June 2017      Emergency landing at Amami Airport because of an engine-troublle alarm signal

According to local newspapers, the Osprey that made emergency landing on Amami Air Port didn't return to its home base of Futenma. Where did it go?  Did it land on the deck of the Bon Homme Richard that was waiting to receive the engine-troubled Osprey off Amami Island to avoid further embarrassment when trying to land at its home base?

The Harrier is known as the Widow Maker, NOT the Osprey

" WA4TKG Today 01:24 am JST

The Harrier is known as the Widow Maker, NOT the Osprey"

Back in the day the Germans use to call the Lockheed F-104 "The Widowmaker".

This is a news?

Any American Aircraft here to support our military I like.

Nah. I mean, I like marvelling at them in museums and whatnot but Japan is not and should not be a US military base.

Any American Aircraft here to support our military I like.

Osprey should be banned from flying over the residential area and town. If the Osprey aircraft has flying only over sea and then public do not need to worry about Osprey aircraft crashing on residential area.

I totally agree, hence the runways being built at Camp Schwab. It will take MCAS Futenma out of Ginowan and the Ospreys will be flying over the ocean!

"the Osprey went into combat, where its record has proved to be remarkably safe. The Osprey has logged more than 100,000 flight hours in some of the most inhospitable conditions imaginable"

So these combat situations means they are being fired upon by the enemy with small arms and or rpgs? Or they are flying in relatively safe locations?

The funny thing is - it doesnt matter if they even would land sideways twice a week, the Gov of Japan will buy them from the US anyway.

So, non-US army folks, residents of Japan - get ready for them if you like it or not, and this time you might not push most of them far far away ( like always just dump those Armystuff to Okinawa) - yup, you will get some too.

But Im sure the Gov. will ease your mind then a bit (.. because of North Korea, because of China, because of AKB48, because of.. ... whatever ) and you will be happy to spend you taxmoney on this pile of junk. (sarkasm off)

Ospreys do not function.

Ground these deathtraps forever before they kill residents, dont care if yanks are taken out.

"The Harrier is known as the Widow Maker, NOT the Osprey"

The Osprey should be known as the Dodo.

I wonder if the UNSC had this much trouble with the Pelican.

If it looks like junk, flies like junk, it is flying junk. Sell them for $1 like the last decom aircraft carrier. Typical "military intelligence" says throw more money at repairs because the money comes out of a different funding category. Maybe the Osprey needs a rename such as B.O.A.T. Bring on another thousand.

Osprey, nicknamed the "widow maker."