Industry and Technology A Retired H-60 Pilot’s Personal Take on the Untapped Potential of the CMV-22B By CAPT Chris “chet” Misner, USN (Ret.)
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hese are my personal views as I ruminate on the potential of the V-22 now that the Navy has acquired these aircraft as well. As an H-60 guy who flew the F and H models, I remember the saying “jack of all trades - expert at none” being tossed around. Reflecting on that phrase makes me think a lot about where the VRM Community is, is headed, or could be headed. With the deployment of the Fleet Logistics MultiMission Squadron (VRM) 30 Detachment 1 in 2021, and Det 2 this year, the stand-up of the "VRM Community" is well underway. As VRM begins to project power from the sea, the shore establishment has reached a major milestone. VRM-50, the Navy’s first CMV-22B Osprey Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS), has celebrated a significant achievement with its “safe-for-flight” certification.
A CMV-22B Osprey, assigned to the “Titans” of Fleet Logistics Multi-Mission Squadron (VRM) 30, prepares to land on the flight deck aboard Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), Dec. 31, 2021. U.S. Navy photo
The CMV-22B will leverage decades of operational and combat experience by by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Isaiah M. Williams. both the USAF and USMC, including over 600,000 flight hours flown by both services. The Navy variant will be capable of transporting up to 6,000 pounds of cargo and/ or personnel and have a range of over 1,150 nautical miles. The V-22's ability to take off and land vertically like a traditional helicopter, as well as its capability to make short-takeoff-and-landings (STOL), provide the Strike Group Commander with a more versatile and flexible aircraft than the C-2 or the H-60.
Medical personnel carry a simulated patient during a medical transport drill on the flight deck of USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70). The drill was the first-ever MEDEVAC by a Navy CMV-22B Osprey aboard an aircraft carrier. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Aaron T. Smith.
Rotor Review #155 Winter '22
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The CNO's Navigation Plan and the Tri-Service Maritime Strategy make it clear that the Navy will be involved in a long-term competition for decades to come. If the Naval Services are going to be primarily concerned with fighting and winning a high-end fight in a distributed maritime and expeditionary operating environment, it is likely that the Navy will have to use the CMV for more than just moving "pax, mail, and cargo," as was the traditional Carrier on Board Delivery (COD) mission of the C-2 Greyhound, the aircraft the CMV replaced. As is the case in the fielding of any new weapon system, there always exists a propensity to undertake a "crawl, walk, run" mentality. We have all lived it, and it makes sense. The question for the both CMV Community and the Navy is this: How long before the
