EXCLUSIVE: Air Force clears CV-22 Ospreys to fly after 2-week safety shutdown
Long-term, the service still seeks to understand what is actually the root cause of the issue, and “finding and implementing a materiel solution," according to a spokeswoman.
By AARON MEHTA
on September 02, 2022 at 11:36 AM
WASHINGTON — Air Force Special Operations Command today cleared its CV-22 Osprey fleet to resume operations, but pilots will be required to operate using a series of risk-mitigation techniques in order to avoid a safety issue related to the engines on the rotorcraft.
Breaking Defense first revealed the AFSOC shutdown on Aug. 17. AFSOC Commander Lt. Gen. Jim Slife ordered the safety standdown in the wake of two safety incidents that had occurred over the previous six weeks, with a total of four such events occurring since 2017.
The problem in question, according to AFSOC, is a “hard clutch engagement” or HCE. Basically, the clutch inside a gearbox that connects one of the CV-22’s two Rolls-Royce Liberty AE1107C engines to the propeller rotor is slipping for an unknown reason. When that happens, the power load transfers nearly instantaneously to the other engine — a design feature that would allow the Osprey to keep flying even if one engine fails. Then, in most cases, the initial clutch re-engages, and the power load rapidly shifts back to the original propeller rotor and engine.
https://breakingdefense.com/2022/09/exclusive-air-force-clears-cv-22-ospreys-to-fly-after-2-week-safety-shutdown/
