Unusual Aircraft - V22 tilt rotor.

[jiberjaber]

Which website gave you that screen shot please, Jason?

360radar.co.uk it's a subscription but has 24 hours free trial (though you need to set up the paypal subscription first then cancel before the 24 hours is up) it has a good 'military only' filter.

Just now:



TARTN01(Voyager) , SENTRY and GRIZZLY (A400) currently airborne heading to muster point readying for RAF100 flypast

[Jurek]

Cheers 

[TimC]

Reading the RAF link above it seems to have been developed from a precursor to the Boeing 707.

Tim, when you say it's uncomfortable, is that because of its construction - all metal, stiff winged - or simply because it is cramped due to the narrow fuselage?

It's because having a joint riveted bloody hurts. I have experience. But it's not actually a reference to the aircraft!

Yes, the C135 is a precursor to the B707. It was developed for the civil market, but was regarded as too small by the potential customers. Boeing went away and redesigned it, but in the meantime the USAF bought it in huge numbers as a transport and tanker aircraft.Since then, it's been expanded into a number of roles. Note, the E3 Sentry is based on the B707, not the C135, and the difference in size is significant but the family resemblance obvious.

Edit: the poster of the flypast participants looks as if it's to scale, but it isn't. The RC135 is 135ft long, the E3 is 153ft, and the A330 is 193ft long (and the weights are 146 tonnes, 156 tonnes and 233 tonnes).

[TheLurker]

V22 stooging around over the house about 17:00.  On a short hop from Brize to Fairford.  Did half a dozen circuits before finally landing at FF and promptly coming back.  Think it was waiting for the Italian aerobatic team to finish their practice.

Grainy video here and some unimpressive stills in the same album.  Am really going to have to buy a better camera cos those pictures don't convey how low it was.

[Croft]

There have been three Ospreys circling over central London in the last couple of days because of the visit of the orange fella.

Boy are they noisy when heading toward you.

[DaveReading]

The V22 Osprey is not in service with the RAF, though it is being considered for certain Special Forces roles. However, there is a USAF V22 Squadron based at RAF Mildenhall, Suffolk. The 7th Special Ops Sqn of the 352nd Special Ops Wing operates both the V22 and the MC130J Cambat Talon in a number of special forces roles. That may well include POTUS security roles when he's in theatre.

Strictly speaking, the Mildenhall Ospreys are CV-22B's. 

The "V" simply indicates that it's capable of vertical flight, the "C" tells you that its nominal role is to transport stuff (like the C-5, C-17, etc) though in the case of the Osprey it normally carries special forces.

[JulesP]

There have been three Ospreys circling over central London in the last couple of days because of the visit of the orange fella.

Boy are they noisy when heading toward you.

Yep, circled Wood Green (ish) multiple times on Thursday and Friday. I thought there were several groups of three flying south, until I twigged what was going on. Extremely noisy on approach and low enough to rattle the walls.

[T42]

The aircraft aren't all that interesting or unusual, but the bleu-blanc-rouge at today's 14th July flypast was:



Somebody's going to get a bollocking.

Armée de l'Air spokesman "explained" that the Patrouille de France usually flies with 8 aircraft. The 8 who got it right just had one cartridge each, while the extra bod had all three and hit the wrong button. Doesn't quite explain things: they knew they needed 9 and the 9th would be blue, so why leave the chance of screwing up?

[Aunt Maud]

Whoopsy!

[ScumOfTheRoad]

Interview without coffee there for chap on the left.

[TheLurker]

It gets better.  Seems that a couple of Police motorbicyclists had a bit of unplanned meeting of vehicles, in front of the President, during the parade.

[orienteer]

The pair of weird aircraft taking off from Northolt this afternoon must have been Ospreys.
,
Some are based in Okinawa, where several have crashed and caused much concern among the local population.