Another interesting mailbag in today's Army Times:

[unhappycamper]

http://www.armytimes.com/community/opinion/army_opinion_letters_080114/

[flamin lib]

1. Read a couple of your posts r.e. mailbag.

If you're referring to the M4 letter it reminds me of a certain Lt. Col. Hackworth and his opposition to the M-16. That weapon was a strictly political decision as well and deployed before it was combat ready (assuming it ever got ready).

In an earlier mailbag the Osprey was defended by saying it was pilot error that resulted in the craft inverting during landing. Having been involved in the design of that craft, not directly but as a rep for various suppliers of components, there were two issues. One was mechanical, the shake/rattle/roll inherent in VTOL rubbed holes in hydraulic lines (fixed by re-routing and inspection after every flight). The other was software, the fly-by-wire tried to keep rotor speed above a "safe" minimum and if RPM dropped would pull pitch from the rotor. The original software wasn't cross-linked so if one rotor slowed the other would maintain lift inverting the craft. That too was fixed but long after that pilot died.

Three words: Military Industrial Complex