The US Navy’s Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE) has inducted the first CMV-22B vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) system for maintenance as part of its long-term sustainment services for the Osprey family of aircraft.
The FRCE is responsible for technical support, repair, and overhaul of naval and expeditionary aviation capabilities for the American military, including the MV-22B and CV-22 Osprey variants employed under the US Marine Corps and the Air Force.
The CMV-22B is the latest configuration of the tiltrotor class. It was first adopted in 2020 on the West Coast and in 2024 on the East Coast.
According to the navy, the FRCE will provide the CMV-22B with its “Planned Maintenance Interval” service, with the scope of work focusing on similar repairs performed for marine and air force Ospreys since the late 2000s.
Considering their low flight hours, the CMV-22Bs are each expected to be in “close-to-new” condition once the necessary works are completed.
The North Carolina-based depot will also utilize its new laser projection system to revamp the VTOL’s fuselage finish, as the exterior markings of the aircraft were made with a different paint job compared to the older Ospreys.
“While the CMV-22B does have some additional capabilities, the maintenance specifications largely remain the same between the Navy and Marine Corps variants of the Osprey,” FRCE V-22 Branch Head Allen Williamson explained.
“Everything, we presume, is the same. But especially with this first aircraft, we’re emphasizing to the team that they should take their time and really explore whether there are any additional differences in the aircraft itself, of the way we work it versus how we would work an MV.”
The CMV-22B
The US Navy CMV-22B is primarily deployed to move equipment, supplies, and troops between shore-based centers to aircraft carriers at sea.
It is powered by twin Rolls-Royce engines with 6,200 horsepower each for a top speed of 316 miles (509 kilometers) per hour.
The aircraft has an overall length of 57 feet (17 meters) and a wingspan of 45 feet (14 meters). It can carry up to 24 personnel, payloads weighing a total of 20,000 pounds (9,091 kilograms), or a single, internally-loaded M1161 Growler light strike vehicle.
It flies at up to 25,000 feet (7,620 meters) with a range of 880 nautical miles (1,013 miles/1,630 kilometers).
The VTOL can be armed with mounted machine guns and retractable/remote-controlled miniguns.