Air Force Special Ops Command Ends CV-22 Stand Down

The Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) has resumed CV-22 Osprey flight operations following a more than two-week stand down to investigate hard clutch engagement incidents.

Kimberly Johnson

Wednesday, September 07, 2022 at 09:12 AM ET

Verified

The issue occurred inside the gearbox that connects the propeller rotor to one of the aircraft’s two engines, according to reports. [Courtesy: U.S. Air Force/Airman 1st Class Xavier Lockley]

Key Takeaways:

Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) has resumed CV-22 Osprey flight operations after a more than two-week grounding due to a series of "high clutch engagement (HCE)" incidents.
Operations recommenced with risk control mitigations, including enhanced crew training and component inspections, even though the root cause of the HCE issue has not yet been identified.
The HCE problem occurs in the gearbox, causing power to rapidly transfer between engines, which can lead to a potential loss of aircraft control; four such incidents have been reported in the last five years.
Despite AFSOC's grounding of its CV-22 fleet, the Marine Corps did not stand down its MV-22 Ospreys, citing that they had previously identified the issue and trained their aircrews on how to respond.

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Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) has resumed CV-22 Osprey flight operations following a more than two-week stand down.

The AFSOC had ordered the grounding of its CV-22 fleet of 52 aircraft on August 16 in order to conduct safety investigations after a string of incidents involving high clutch engagement (HCE). CV-22 operations resumed September 2 “with risk control mitigations in place,” however, the root cause of the HCE issue has not yet been identified, AFSOC officials said.