Summary
The Osprey was flown freely during the latest Glasgow tests but more often was tethered to the ground with thick steel cables, so the aircraft's ability to lift loads in cold weather could be measured. In 1992, Boeing signed the paperwork to pay $3 million for the business section of the base, including the long runways, hangars, the water plant, the aviation fuel plant and 4,000 acres of land, according to Valley County Chairman Dave Pippin.\n With a concrete runway several feet deep, 13,500-feet long and 300-feet wide, the world's largest and heaviest jets can land and take off here. After a 2000 crash, the Marine Corps grounded the Osprey, along with two other aircraft, for 18 months. * Unlike traditional helicopters, the Osprey cannot autorotate its blades for an emergency landing if it loses engine power. * The Osprey is not reliable enough and cannot fly well in war zones or dusty, hot areas like Iraq. * The aircraft carries a low-powered machine gun that can only shoot backward rather than a high-powered gun that can pivot 360-degrees to protect troops.
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Getting a Lift
For several weeks in January, Valley County Sheriff Glen Meier and his deputies tried to get onto the former Glasgow Air Force Base to catch a rare glimpse of The Boeing Co. testing its controversial MV 22 Osprey.
The Osprey, a quarter-century in development, is billed as the next revolution in moving troop, because the aircraft can take off vertically like a helicopter and fly like a traditional airplane.But even the sheriff was told to stay away."It was top secret," Meier said. "I wanted to get the deputies up there and see the installation in case of a terrorist action, but Boeing's secu...See the full content of this document
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