V-22 Osprey is the American multi-purpose tiltrotor aircraft, created by Bell and Boeing in the late 1980s.The V-22 is a tiltrotor convertiplane – an aircraft capable of flying both as a helicopter and as an airplane, switching from mode to mode by changing the configuration of its power plant (turning the propellers). This allows it to combine the maneuverability and vertical flight capabilities of helicopters with the range, altitude and speed of airplanes.The aircraft was created in the 1980s to meet the US military’s need for a vehicle capable of vertical takeoff and landing, but with the speed and range of an airplane. The main executor of the project was the Bell company, which developed this topic since the 1950s and implemented 2 projects: XV-3 and XV-15.The V-22 program has become one of the biggest breakthroughs in the industry, which has brought both outstanding results and serious problems with the cost of the machines, their operation and safety.At the moment, the V-22 is the first and only serial representative of this type of machines. However, several more military and civilian projects, conceptually similar to the V-22, are already at different stages of implementation.
V-22 Osprey – the first tiltrotor
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