Briefed to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday, the Pentagon is expected to clear the flight ban on V-22 Osprey as early as next week, clearing the way for the services to operate the tilt-rotors once again after nearly three months after it was grounded.
This is happening in the aftermath of a tragic incident that shook the military aviation in early December, when the entire Osprey fleet was grounded following a fatal crash in Japan that killed eight U.S. service members.
The Pentagon said last month that it believed to have identified the mechanical failure that led the Osprey to roll over mid-flight and catch fire in an engine before crashing into the water.
After the fatal crash, two top military readiness lawmakers requested a review into the Osprey program. The operational grounding of entire fleet of around 400 aircraft was intended to inspect each of them to mitigate risk , while there was an investigation into the deadly crash.
Japan had repeatedly expressed concern with the hybrid aircraft after an initial crash near Okinawa happened in 2016.
Also in August 2023, a V-22 Osprey helicopter, carrying 22 US Marines, had tragically crashed off the coast of Australia. Three US marines have been killed and 19 injured in the fatal accident.
In the months since, the services have worked on plans to mitigate the known material failure by conducting additional safety checks and establishing a new, more conservative approach to how the Osprey is operated.
Three Marines died in a separate crash involving the Osprey during a training exercise off the northern coast of Australia in August 2023.
The decision meant that all versions of the Osprey flown by the Marine Corps, Air Force and Navy were grounded. As per officials, the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), which grounded the Osprey, will lift the ban and allow services to begin again.
Officials said the U.S. military will also share its plans with Japan, which is the only international partner involved in the Osprey program. Japan also grounded its fleet of 14 V-22s after the November crash.
However, the procedure for operational resumption in such cases always meets tough requirements. One shouldn't expect the services to fly the V-22 right away and it’s expected that once a ground bulletin is lifted, each branch of the service operating the Osprey - the Marine Corps, Air Force, and Navy will be given instructions on specific action items to fly the Osprey again.
The lifting of the flight ban marks a major step towards restoring confidence in an aircraft that, despite its criticisms, commands a significant force of the U.S. military capability.
