MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. -- Marine Aircraft Group 16 of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar celebrated 100,000 flight hours with the first ever tilt-rotor platform Feb. 18.
The V-22 “Osprey” flight hours are a combined total from the Air Force and Marine Corps.
Maj. Gen. Thomas Conant, the commanding general of 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, congratulated the Marines on their part in the milestone and discussed the Osprey’s impact on the Marine Corps.
“The MV-22 is not the future, it’s the present,” said Conant. “It’s making a difference in not only saving the lives of Marines, but in all of aviation.”
Representatives from manufacturers Boeing and Bell Helicopter also spoke at the ceremony.
“The 100,000 flight hours marks a significant milestone because it shows the safety the aircraft has achieved in the past ten years,” said Scott McGowan, the West Coast regional manager of government programs with Bell Helicopter. “[The Osprey’s] initial 100,000 hours are the safest the Marine Corps has ever produced with a new aircraft.”
The Air Force and Marine Corps deployed the Osprey a combined 14 times in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2007.
“The Osprey is no longer a test or experimental aircraft,” said Lt. Col. Michael Boorstein, the commanding officer of Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 166. “It’s a proven combat military aircraft.”
The Marine Corps is currently phasing out the Vietnam-era CH-46 “Sea Knight” with the new tilt-rotor platform. The Osprey can double the speed and height of its predecessor, keeping it further away from small arms fire, and carry twice as much cargo and passengers.
There are currently three Osprey squadrons operating aboard the air station and a fourth Ch-46 squadron is preparing to transition to the new platform later this year.