European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 10, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wlyma one of six prototypes of the worlds first production tilt Rotor aircraft the Bell Boeing v-22 Osprey on a test flight. Airlines have expressed guarded interest at Best in a civilian version of the Complex aircraft based on Steep Cost estimates. Military version May fall victim to the budget  the tilt Rotor Osprey take off by Eric Weiner new York times among the military hardware vulnerable to congressional budget cuts this year is a Peculiar hybrid aircraft called the v-22 Osprey that is part helicopter and part air plane. It is powered by Large Rotor Blades on each Wing tip. When the Blades Are pitched up for Takeoff or Landing it flies like a helicopter. When the Blades Are facing Forward it flies like an air plane. The v-22 is heralded by some Industry experts As the most dramatic aeronautical Advance in years. The technology was designed mainly to provide the Marine corps with a Limber military transport. But the aircraft at about $22 million each Are considerably More expensive than the military helicopters they Are designed to replace and the Bush administration tried unsuccessfully to scrap the program last year. Proponents contend that the v-22 could have other is an enter cd to shuttle for example with the Speed of an air plane and the versatility of a helicopter whisk my commuters from Wall Street to Washington in no est ave iding the Long queues on runways and to Esvin tre tryin9-the cab ride from Manhattan w York s la Guardia Airport. Admy he National aeronautics and space could to predicted that by the year 2000 there be a Market for As Many As 1,600 of the Craft. Tod Ramoa to rotary of defense Dick Cheney tried $180 billion in the penta9�n budget As part of granted he proposed defense cuts. But Congress for research h6? 3 reprieve allocating $255 million ultimate Fate de elopement in this fiscal year. Its n s a Al tary aircraft remains Uncertain. Oircrafuomnhm9 built s x prototypes of the cd instruct inn the is n9 and had hoped to begin originally Diann h version this year in what was aircraft. The Ron As a billion  650 Boeing helirnnt/30, 8 one a two major programs for v-22 will eventual if decade and Bell is hoping the Homey said account for 20 percent of sales develop Mem nmrpt0s.kphase of an aviation under contract pm ilo31 be9an in 1956 when Bell from Nasa built the first hybrid helicopter air plane called the Xv-3. In the 1970s, Bell built a larger More advanced version the Xv-15, from which the current aircraft is derived. One of the biggest technical hurdles engineers had to overcome was finding a Way to build an Airframe that could withstand the different types of vibrations that a helicopter and an air plane produce As they Fly. In what engineers Call Quot Aero elastics Quot aircraft parts Are designed to function Well at the specific very different vibration frequencies generated by a Given plane or helicopter. The problem was solved by building the v-22 out of mainly Carbon fiber composites which Are lighter and easier to tailor to a specified stiffness than aluminium. When the v-22 was conceived for the military it was seen As Ideal for amphibious assaults and search and Rescue. The v-22 can Fly farther than most helicopters which often need to be transported in cargo planes to a Battle scene. It would have been Ideal for the botched Rescue attempt of american hostages in Iran in 1980, since the ill fated fueling Stop in the desert would not have been necessary advocates said. Proposed civilian uses have included drug interdiction disaster Relief and Border patrol. But the most alluring adaptation a and the one promoted by Bell and Boeing a is that of a Small passenger Craft capable of shuttling up to 40 passengers from downtown to downtown at speeds of 300 to 350 Mph faster than any helicopter. Advocates envision a network of Quot Verti ports Quot located near or in City centers that would accommodate commuter flights of 300 Miles or less freeing up Landing slots at Large airports for Long distance flights. At new York s three airports an estimated 40 percent of the planes Fly 300 Miles or less the Federal aviation administration has awarded $2.7 million in Grants for 15 cities and states to study the feasibility of building Verti ports. One recipient is the port authority of new York and new Jersey which is searching for a site in Manhattan. Quot nothing on the horizon offers the potential for capacity increases system wide like the tilt Rotor Quot said Richard Milhaven a planner with the port authority. But critics argue that the minutes saved and hassles avoided do not justify the steeply higher Cost of buying saturday March 10, 1990 and maintaining the More Complex aircraft estimates for the Cost of a civilian version of the v-22 Range from $12 million to $18 million with hourly maintenance costs estimated at $835 an hour a comparable Turboprop costs $9 million and $180 an hour for maintenance according to a Nasa study largely because of such figures the airlines have expressed guarded interest at Best in the technology a the number of passengers paying for it May not justify the service Quot said Steve Horner regional airline analyst with a Mark an aviation consulting firm in Arlington a. Horner added that the Verti ports while costing Only a fraction of the Price of a new Airport would Likely encounter Many of the political and environmental blockades that have hobbled proposed airports. Advocates counter with the argument that a tilt Rotor would save costs elsewhere. For instance since most of the Verti ports would be located in the heart of a City passengers would save the Cost of a taxi to the Airport Quot you also eliminate the aggravation Factor by not having to go through the Airport Quot said David Jensen editor of Rotor and Wing International. Quot there arc a lot of people who would be willing to pay for  still Many obstacles remain. The government would have to write new rules for certifying the aircraft in anticipation of a civilian spinoff of the v-22, the aviation Agency has been gathering data from the military test flights. Quot it la save several years and a Bunch of dollars Quot said James i. Mcdaniel director of the tilt Rotor program office at the Agency. The government would also have to devise a Way to squeeze the unconventional aircraft with its steeply angled landings into the air traffic flow without further clogging the skies. Quot if you stick them in today s Jet system then you re wasting the tilt Rotor s potential said Thomas Tripp a spokesman for Boeing helicopters. Meanwhile eur far a consortium of companies from Britain France Spain Italy and West Germany has begun to design a Miliar aircraft. And a japanese company Ishida has hired several former Bell engineers in Texas to work on similar technology. Quot right now we have a lock on the technology Quot said Mark f. Fling a consultant in los Angeles who helps finance aviation projects. Quot we Don t want it to wind up like the Var Quot he said referring to the american developed videocassette recorder now made in Japan. The stars and stripes a a a Page 13