Marines Announce Return to Flight Plan for Ospreys of Lift on the Rotor System
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Hawaii Marine Scuba Volume 29, Number 19 Serving Marine Corps Base Hawaii May11, 2000 Hanauma Bay A-5 B-1 Welcome Home Alpha 1 /1 2 1/3 returns Cpl. Charles E. Moore Filipino and U.S. relations by participating in many communi- Combat Correspondent ty events, Cabaniss said. Medical personnel came together to form a mobile medical and dental clinic to provide free health- First Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment came home to MCB care to Fillipinos who couldn't afford it otherwise, he added. Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay, last week after a seven-month deploy- While operating in the Republic of Korea, 1/3 worked along- ment to Okinawa, Japan. side their Korean counterparts for the Korean Incremental While based in Okinawa as part of 4th Marine Regiment, Training Program. During this time, 1/3 worked with the U.S. 1/3 trained in other areas of Japan, Korea and the Philippines Army as well, hitching a ride on helicopters from the 17th during the deployment. Aviation 13rigadF to an Army camp along the demilitarized A highlight of their Unit Deployment Program trip was par- zone. ticipation in Exercise Balikatan '00. The exercise marked the During KITP, the battalion completed mountain warfare first time an American force participated in a large scale exer- training, and improved the interoperability of the Korean and cise with the Philippines since 1995, said Maj. Christian American Marines. Cabaniss, operations officer for 1/3. The battalion participated in various other smaller exercises During Balikatan, which roughly translates to "shoulder the during their deployment, including a battalion field exercise at load together", the Marines and Sailors from 1/3 worked exten- the Jungle Warfare Training Center in Okinawa. sively with their Filipino counterparts while gaining knowledge "Everyone kept a real positive attitude (throughout the from each other. deployment)," said Sgt. Maj. Rick Hawkins, battalion sergeant The battalion also took several steps to help improve major. "I'm real proud of the battalion." Marines announce return to flight plan for Ospreys of lift on the rotor system. Power settling is a phenomenon MV-22 accident investigators common to helicopter flight. Officials continue to look at other possible causes such as will now focus on loss of lift settling with power and the effects of operating two aircraft in close proximity to each other in flight. Marine Corps Division of Public Affairs A thorough review by the Naval Air Systems Command, the Press Release Naval Safety Center and the Deputy Commandant for Aviation Cpl. Charles E. Moore has found no structural or design flaws that preclude safe flight Stacie Hubbard gives her husband, 2nd Lt. Chad Hubbard, a big wel- U.S. WASH- operations and come home hug after being apart for seven months. Alpha Battery, 1st HEADQUARTERS, MARINE CORPS, the Marine Corps maintains complete faith in Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, and 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine INGTON, D.C. - Marine Corps officials said Monday that a the safety of the V-22 aircraft. Regiment returned to MCB Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay, this week after their phenomenon known as "power settling" is now the focus of As a result, Gen. Jones has lifted the temporary operational Unit Deployment to Okinawa, Japan. their investigation into the crash of an MV-22 Osprey aircraft pause for instrumented models of the Osprey, known as that killed 19 Marines April 8 in Marana, Ariz. Engineering, Manufacturing and Development aircraft, in the As part of a regularly scheduled Defense Department news first of three phases in the resumption of flight of the MV-22. briefing, Marine Deputy Commandant for Aviation Lt. Gen. Developmental test pilots will continue to simulate and ana- Bravo 1/12 deploys Fred McCorkle outlined what officials have learned since the lyze possible causes of the accident. accident. The general also announced a phased plan to resume Following continued analysis of flight operations and flights of the MV-22 Osprey. insights gained from further findings of the investigation, the Following the accident, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Marine Corps will conduct a phased approach in its return of to Okinawa, Japan James L. Jones ordered an operational pause of all V-22 flight production MV-22s to flight status, initially with essential air- operations to allow investigators to analyze information pro- crew only, and eventually with passengers. Cpl. Charles E. Moore Sgt. Roger Newcomb, battery ammuni- vided by an onboard data recorder and to provide insight as to The MV-22 has safely flown more than 40 troop-lift mis- Correspondent Combat tion chief. the cause of the accident. sions and has carried more than 700 troops during operational The battery has been preparing to Analysis of the data retrieved from the data recorder, called evaluation flights. Bravo Battery, 1st Marines, 12th deploy for nearly a year, doing field a Crash Survivable Memory Unit (CSMU), along with exten- To personally demonstrate his confidence in the MV-22, Marine Regiment, deployed to Okinawa training and participating in exercises. sive engineering investigations have confirmed that all aircraft Gen. Jones plans to be aboard the first aircraft carrying passen- this week to replace A Battery, 1/12 as "We've been doing back-to-back exer- systems and software were operating properly at the time of the gers. part of the Unit Deployment Program. cises since October", said Capt. George accident. Marine Corps officials stressed the importance of informing The seven-month deployment helps Robinson, battery commanding officer. The data shows that in the last seconds of its flight, the the public about both the decision to resume flights and their keep a forward-deployed artillery battery "We've spent a whole lot of time away mishap aircraft was in a high rate of descent at a relatively low commitment to the MV-22 Osprey aircraft. in Okinawa at all times. from home." forward airspeed. They maintain the Osprey is clearly a much better, safer, and "We're going to be the tip of the spear These characteristics can lead to a condition known as more capable aircraft than the Vietnam-era CH-46 and CH-53D there for the Pacific Theater," said Staff See BRAVO 1/12, A-3 power settling (or vortex ring state) which can result in a loss helicopters that it will replace. 3/3 Marines depart for seven-month unit deployment Cpl. Charles E. Moore tracked, wire-guided, weapons system, is they've trained in Kahuku Training Area, The hardest part of the deployment and now it's time to go," Bean said. "All Combat Correspondent optimistic about his first deployment and Pohakuloa Training Area and Schofield may just be the hardest thing to prepare this will pass and, before you know it, time on ship. Barracks. They also underwent a Marine for, he added, and that's the initial sepa- it'll be December." Marines and Sailors from 3rd "I'm looking forward to experiencing Corps Combat Readiness Exercise to ration. "There are a lot of us leaving our "It's hard, I don't know if there are Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment recently oriental culture," he said. prove they were combat ready. families." any words to explain how I feel (about traded the subtropical beaches of Hawaii The battalion has utilized many train- "No one's going to call me up and say, Unit bonding will help Marines get being apart from her husband for seven for the far Eastern shores of Okinawa, ing exercises over the past year to pre- `Lt. Col. Bean, is 3/3 ready?" Bean said. over the separation, he said. While unit months)," said Carey Tomlinson, a 3/3 Japan. pare for this. They, started with a six- "Of course we're ready. "This is the cul- functions may not erase the pain of sepa- Marine's spouse. "I know they go out The main body of the battalion depart- week long exercise in Australia for exer- mination of everything we've done over ration, they will help ease it. there and do the best they can. That's ed recently from MCB Hawaii, Kaneohe cise Crocodile '99. Since that time, the past year." "You've done everything you can do always something to be proud of." Bay for a seven-month deployment. The battalion is going in full-force as part of the Unit Deployment Program and will be part of the 4th Marine Index Regiment in Okinawa, Japan for seven months. Marines will be kept busy during the A Section deployment with a variety of training Sergeant Major's column 2 exercises, including Cooperation Afloat Asian Pacific heritage month 3 and Readiness Training Exercise 2000 HMX-1 4 and field training in Korea and Japan. Scuba 5 "We've got a very exciting schedule MOUT 6 in Okinawa," said Lt. Col. Mark H. Every Clime and Place 8 Bean, battalion commander. Commandant Visits Europe 10 The schedule offers relief for Marines Courts Martial 12 like LanCe Cpl. Salvador Jimenez, a per- sonal effects clerk, who wants to deploy B Section but doesn't want to stay in the rear with Hanauma Bay 1 the gear.. Military Appreciation 2 "1 want to do some kind of field oper- SMSP 3 ation," he said about the chance to train Ticket to Fun 3 in other countries. "I'm pretty excited." Tattoo Tips 4 Many Marines will increase more Cpl. Roman Yurek Hurricane Readiness 5 than just their field knowledge while Lance Cpl. Knapp, aims high to cover the windows and roof of the building. This way he can take out an enemy Movies/Free Ads 7 they're gone. target that dares to stick his head out in Knapp's sights.