Walt writes:

If it has a cobra escort.. Well.. It loses it's altitude/ speed
advantage over alternative modern helicopters..

Rendevous scenario. The Cobras launch from a forward base and meet at
the LZ with the Osprey which has travelled from a base further away.

BB

Saying that the V-22 will rendesvous with the Cobras at the LZ
violates the KISS principle. And it is just ridiculous on its face.

It is saying that we can predict what the enemy will do and that is
always nuts. No one can guarantee that there won't be a threat en
route. It is just nuts to plan that way.

And STILL it means that the V-22's operational radius is no greater
than the Cobra escorts.

The concept of the V-22 was flawed from the first day it was discussed
for carrying grunts. It is the best (or worst) example of the
Military-Industrial-Complex I know.

Hmm, in practice the way to analyse a system (whether a military, or
financial trading system) where the future is never known but is bet
on anyway because the alternative is to stand aside and do nothing, is
to see how it performs under worst-case conditions. That predicates
that the "best" system is never the most optimized one, but one which
is crude (a relative word, to be sure) but robust. The V-22 I cannot
judge given the information available, but it appears to be more of a
niche system, rather than one which will be used in every situation
where transport is needed. At least, with the current state of
technology. But as I said, I cannot judge...
--
Gernot Hassenpflug