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Israel Close to Purchasing V-22 Osprey Aircraft

Aug 20, 2019

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The IDF is modernizing its squadrons of fighter jets and helicopters. IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi has reportedly determined the operational need for some 12-14 aircraft which can take off and land like helicopters but fly like fixed-wing planes.

It is over this backdrop that the Israeli Defense Ministry issued a price and availability request to the U.S. Navy’s international programs office for the acquisition of the Bell Boeing’s V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft, according to aviationweek.com. The V-22 are designed for sensitive, extensive missions both during times of war and routine.

After years of discussion on what should be ordered as a replacement/ addition to the UH-60A Yanshuf and the CH-53 2025 Yas’ur, it looks like the Israeli Defence Ministry has taken the next step, reports yahoo.com. Israel first expressed interest in Boeing’s V-22 aircraft in 2012. Last year, a defense source told jpost.com that Israel was once again considering purchasing the V-22 Osprey. If purchased, Israel would be the second country outside the United States to deploy the V-22. Japan bought four of the aircraft in 2016.

The multi-mission, military aircraft with both vertical takeoff and landing, and short takeoff and landing capabilities, uses tiltrotor technology, combining the vertical performance of helicopters (such as take off and landings) with the speed, altitude and range of fixed-wing planes, making it an ideal plane for special operation missions since it does not require a runway.

Primarily used by the US Marine Corps and the Air Force Special Operations Command since entering service in 2007, the V-22 has seen extensive action in Afghanistan and Iraq supporting long-range rapid reaction and crisis response missions.

With a maximum cruising speed of 522 kilometers per hour and an extended range capability of 2,103 km without refueling, the V-22 would allow Israel to reach Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Sudan.