A U.S. Air Force Osprey should be lifting vertically from the Durango-La Plata County Airport within the next few days after an unscheduled weeklong pit stop for repairs.
The versatile airplane, which can take off and land like a helicopter and fly like a regular fixed-wing aircraft, descended upon the local airport Sunday afternoon when the Osprey’s computer detected a problem with metal shavings in the gear box, said Col. Arthur Davis of the Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque.
“The airplane is smarter than we are,” Davis said. “It knows when it’s not feeling well.”
While not a “dire emergency,” the Osprey computer advised the Kirtland-based crew, who were practicing flying in the mountains, to land as soon as practicable. Durango happened to be handy.
The situation “was more serious than a check-the-engine light, but it was not going to fall out of the sky, either,” Davis said.
A maintenance crew from Kirtland was then sent to Durango to take apart the engine and replace some parts.
It’s a lengthy process because it’s “like getting your transmission (in your car) changed. You have to pull the engine out (first),” Davis said.
Davis said the U.S. Air Force was grateful for the assistance from the airport and local law enforcement, which made security checks.
The Ospreys “are $70 million apiece. We would rather not have anybody take souvenirs,” Davis said.
The Osprey has proved valuable in Afghanistan, where the aircraft has transported troops and made “Golden Hour” evacuations from the battlefield to the hospital.
The Golden Hour is named for the high value of a quick response. The chances of surviving a traumatic injury improve dramatically the sooner the injured can be transported to medical care.
Davis said the Osprey would be evacuating Durango soon.
“We’ll try to get our toys out of your way as soon as we can,” he said.
jhaug@durangoherald.com
