The Dream Machine

by Richard Whittle

  Unrelenting Osprey foe Harry Dunn, whose name appears often in the narrative, was an unexpected and incomparably rich source of documents. When I interviewed Harry for the first time, he was clearly chagrined to hear that my aim was simply to tell the Osprey’s story, not try to kill it. Even so, and at his own suggestion, Harry loaned me his entire Osprey archive: six banker’s boxes and dozens of CDs containing hundreds of documents and his voluminous e-mail correspondence on the topic. The latter told a story previously unknown to me, and I thank Harry for granting me permission to make use of those e-mails.

  Someone who deserves my special thanks is Dick Spivey. Some others who lived the Osprey story may wonder at the prominent role he plays in the narrative. Thousands of people worked on the Osprey over the years, and in many ways, Dick was far from the most important. As a marketer, he made no major business decisions, supervised no engineering, cast no deciding votes. Ironically, as of this writing Spivey had never flown in the Osprey. No one else, though, was more seized by the dream that the tiltrotor and the Osprey represented or worked harder to keep both alive. When I began this project in the fall of 2006, Dick and I had never met, though like many reporters I had interviewed him once by telephone. When we sat down to talk for the first time, I was struck by what a perfect prism his own story was for looking at the larger story I wanted to tell. Dick’s forty-seven-year career at Bell Helicopter and his long love affair with the tiltrotor made him an ideal representative for the many others who shared his dreams. As I studied the role he played, I also came to agree with former Bell Helicopter test pilot Ron Erhart, who told me: “I don’t think Dick Spivey was ever given enough credit for everything that happened. He may not have done a lot of these things himself but he sure put the idea in somebody else’s mind that could do them.” Over the nearly three years I worked on this book, I called on Dick frequently. He proved a candid witness to the Osprey’s history as well as his own. He was also a walking encyclopedia on every technical aspect of the tiltrotor. Even better, his answers always checked out. I thank him for his ceaseless and cheerful cooperation through more than two dozen formal interviews and dozens of other phone calls and e-mails. I’m also grateful to Dick and his wife, Terry, for their hospitality when I was in Fort Worth.

  For tutoring me in aeronautical and engineering concepts, and in some cases for checking the accuracy of what I wrote once I thought I understood them, I am grateful to a number of experts. I thank Troy Gaffey, Tom Macdonald, Don Byrne, Al Schoen, John Arvin, Michael Hirschberg, Kenneth Katz, J. Gordon Leishman, Alan Ewing, and Bill Rumberger for their patience. To help ensure accuracy on historical, political, and Marine Corps issues, I asked three experts in those areas to read the manuscript: Roger Connor, vertical flight curator of the National Air and Space Museum and chairman of the American Helicopter Society History Committee; Pat Towell, who for decades covered the annual defense battles on Capitol Hill for Congressional Quarterly and now puts his exacting research and analytical skills to work for the Congressional Research Service; and U.S. Naval Academy graduate Bob Timberg, whose service in the Marine Corps was followed by a distinguished career as White House Correspondent for the Baltimore Sun, authorship of the remarkable book The Nightingale’s Song (Simon & Schuster, 1995), and editorship of the U.S. Naval Institute magazine Proceedings. I’m grateful to Roger, Pat, and Bob for their comments and corrections. Any mistakes, of course, are solely my responsibility.

  Bob Timberg is also one of two authors who became mentors to me as I navigated the unfamiliar waters of the publishing world and learned how to write a book. The other is James Reston, Jr., author of fifteen enviable books, and one of the most decent human beings I know. Bob Timberg’s enthusiasm and advice got me started and helped keep me going. Jim Reston’s wise counsel, including a pivotal idea for how to structure the narrative, helped me finish the job. I look up to them both and thank them for their encouragement and guidance.

  Another who read my draft proposal for this book and offered comments and encouragement is my steadfast friend Peter Schechter, whose website, www.peterschechter.com, accurately describes him as a Renaissance man— political adviser, farmer, winery owner, and author of two suspense novels.

  I especially thank my literary agent, Richard Abate, who grasped the potential of the story I wanted to tell right away and helped me hone my concept for the book. No author could ask for a wiser adviser or a more astute advocate.

  This book also bears the invisible but indelible imprint of my editor at Simon & Schuster, Colin Fox, a man of southern charm and a writer’s editor if ever there was one. Colin’s passion for the story and his support as I reported and wrote energized me. His deft touch streamlined the original manuscript and, to borrow a term from aerodynamics, much improved its lift-to-drag ratio. I also thank Colin’s able assistant, Michele Bové, a woman of northern efficiency, for guiding me through the unfamiliar extraneous chores that go with completing a book such as this. I owe thanks as well to the inimitable Gypsy da Silva and to Tom Pitoniak, each a credit to their calling, for keen-eyed copyediting.

  The deepest debt of thanks I owe is to my favorite photographer, and my dear wife, Faye Ross. As many authors’ spouses do, Faye accepted the financial insecurity my taking on this project meant for our family. As many also do, she endured the fact that, for its author, a book rapidly evolves from a dream into an obsession—a word that often, and in my case correctly, connotes sometimes bizarre and annoying behavior. She not only put up with my increasing inability to talk or think about much of anything other than “The Book” but also swallowed—usually—the temptation to tell me how sick she was of hearing about it. She consoled me when I ran into difficulties and gave me shrewd advice that helped solve many of them. She accompanied me to Yuma, where she took photographs of the Osprey and the members of VMM-263. Most important, she served as my first and most demanding reader. She helped me think through the story a chapter at a time. She read and reread as I wrote and rewrote. She repeatedly brought my focus back to the forest when my reporter’s fascination with detail led me to zero in on the trees. In this way, she shaped the narrative as much as I did. Above all, she allowed me to live my dream. She has my everlasting thanks, and my undying love.

  Richard Whittle

  Chevy Chase, Maryland

  May 2009

  SOURCES

  My goal in writing this book was not merely to recount the V-22 Osprey’s history but to describe the dreams and drama behind the dry details of dates and dollars and Defense Department decisions. This is why The Dream Machine is a narrative rather than a conventional history, but a history it is. My sources for the historical facts include a number of books, hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles, and dozens of government and corporate documents. I have listed the most important sources publicly available in the Bibliography. Among them are government documents I obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, such as a previously unreported cockpit video and transcript of the crew conversations in the lead Osprey the night of the April 8, 2000, crash at Marana, Arizona. I also have benefited greatly from government documents that as a rule aren’t released, such as test pilot reports, which were provided to me unofficially by sources who asked to remain unidentified. Former officials of Bell Helicopter Textron Inc. and Boeing Company provided me with copies of unclassified government and internal corporate documents never made public before. Dick Spivey loaned me the work diaries he intermittently kept in “MIT notebooks” between 1971 and 1996. I also reviewed forty-eight DVDs relevant to the story that were provided by Bell Helicopter, including video of the crash of the fifth Osprey prototype at Wilmington, Delaware, on June 11, 1991, and of the fourth prototype at Quantico, Virginia, on July 20, 1992.

  As much as this book is a history, however, it is also a memoir—not my own, though I was present at various of the events described, but a memoir in the sense that much of the narrative is based on the recollections of those who lived the Osprey story. From the ti
me I began my research in the summer of 2006 until I finished revising the manuscript in early 2009, I conducted more than four hundred interviews with more than two hundred people. As those numbers suggest, many of those I interviewed were kind enough to talk to me more than once, and in not a few cases, numerous times. With few exceptions, and always with the consent of the subject, I taped these interviews to ensure accuracy. A list of those I interviewed appears below.

  Those interviews are the primary sources for many of the anecdotes and scenes in this book and the dialogue in them—with major exceptions worth noting. The crew conversations quoted in chapter eight as the fourth Osprey prototype flew from Eglin Air Force Base to Quantico on July 20, 1992, are taken from a forty-nine-page cockpit voice recorder transcript included as an exhibit in the Naval Court of Inquiry report on that crash. The pilot conversations in the lead Osprey at Marana quoted in chapter nine are taken from the cockpit video I obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. The pilot conversations quoted in chapter ten during the ill-fated flight of Crossbow 08 on December 11, 2000, appear in the Judge Advocate General Manual investigation report on that crash. Some other dialogue is taken from formal sources, such as transcripts of congressional hearings, Pentagon briefings, or television broadcasts. In the main, however, the dialogue is as it was recalled—usually many years later—by those who were present. Where possible, I have corroborated descriptions of scenes and events by reviewing relevant documents or contemporary accounts or by interviewing, often several times, others who were present. Where participants agreed on what happened but disagreed about precisely what was said, I have used the dialogue recalled by the person whose memory seemed strongest. Where others said to be present at an event couldn’t recall it, I have reported what the person with the strongest recollection remembered but made clear that memories conflicted, either in the narrative or in the chapter notes below. The facts in this book are documented; the stories are told through the eyes of those who were there.

  INTERVIEWS

  Edward C. “Pete” Aldridge, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology, and logistics, 2001–2003; Brian Alexander, attorney for survivors of crash victims; James Ambrose, undersecretary of the Army 1981–88 (by e-mail); William A. Anders, former executive vice president, Textron Inc.; Capt. Charles Arnold, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; John Arvin, V-22 engine program manager 1985–88, Allison Gas Turbine Division, General Motors Corp.; James F. Atkins, former president, Bell Helicopter; Norman R. Augustine, member, Panel to Review the V-22 Program; Maj. Aisha Bakkar, USMC; Col. (ret.) Bob Balch, USMC; William L. Ball III, secretary of the Navy 1988– 89; Staff Sgt. (ret.) Julius Banks, USMC, former MOTT member; Anthony R. Battista, former House Armed Services Committee aide; Brig. Gen. (ret.) Harry Bendorf, USAF, former Washington office director, Boeing Helicopter Co.; Lt. Col. Anthony Bianca, USMC, former MOTT pilot; Daniel R. Bilicki, former military marketer, Textron Inc.; Capt. Chris Bissette, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Lt. Gen. (ret.) Harold W. Blot, USMC; Lt. Col. (ret.) Lance Bodine, USAF, Bell-Boeing CV-22 program manager; Capt. Jonathan Brandt, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Robert C. Broadhurst, former contract manager, Boeing Co.; Staff Sgt. Andrew Bryant, USMC, VMM-263 maintainer; Lt. Col. (ret.) Roy Buckner, USA, former Bell Helicopter and Textron lobbyist; Donald Byrne, V-22 flight test director, Boeing Co.; Gerald Cann, principal deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for research and development 1978–85; Dorman Cannon, former Bell Helicopter tiltrotor test pilot; Cpl. (ret.) Clifford Carlson, USMC, former MOTT member; Ward Carroll, former V-22 spokesman, Naval Air Systems Command; Lt. Col. (ret.) Tom Carter, USMC, V-22 action officer, Pentagon Office of Operational Test and Evaluation; John Christie, husband of former David Chu aide Deborah Christie; Thomas Christie, former director, Pentagon Office of Operational Test and Evaluation; David Chu, former director, Pentagon Office of Program Analysis and Evaluation; Ross Clark, former deputy V-22 program manager, Boeing Helicopter Co.; Capt. Danny Cohlmeyer, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Lionel Collins, former aide to Rep. Pete Geren, D-Texas; Virginia Copeland, former personal assistant to Dick Spivey; Matthew Cordner, manager, Bell Helicopter XworkS; Joseph Cosgrove, former Boeing Helicopter Co. marketer; Warrant Officer 1 Mike Costello, USMC, former V-22 maintainer; Gunnery Sgt. Joseph Cottle, USMC, former MOTT member, VMM-263 maintainer; Eugene Covert, member, Panel to Review the V-22 Program; Philip Coyle, former director, Pentagon Office of Operational Test and Evaluation; Charles Crawford, former technical director, U.S. Army Aviation Systems Command; Col. (ret.) Jimmie Creech, USMC, first JVX program manager; Col. (ret.) Paul Croisetiere, former V-22 developmental test pilot; Lt. Col. (ret.) Ron “Curly” Culp, USMC, former MOTT member; Jim Curren, senior manager for V-22 operations, integration, and functional test, Boeing Rotorcraft Division; Gen. (ret.) John R. Dailey, USMC, former assistant commandant of the Marine Corps, chairman, Panel to Review the V-22 Program; Brig. Gen. (ret.) Andrew Davis, former director, Marine Corps Public Affairs; Master Sgt. Maurice DeFino, USMC, VMM-263 maintainer; Rudy deLeon, deputy secretary of defense 2000–2001; Col. (ret.) Kevin Dodge, USMC, former MOTT member; Beverly F. Dolan, former chairman, Textron Inc.; Mike J. Dubberly, former branch head for structures, Naval Air Systems Command; Philip Dunford, V-22 program manager, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems; Harry P. Dunn; Col. (ret.) Richard Dunnivan, VMMT-204 commanding officer 2001–2003; Thomas Eager, MIT professor and expert witness in Aircraft 4 crash lawsuit; Gordon England, secretary of the Navy 2001–2003; Ron Erhart, former Bell Helicopter tiltrotor test pilot; Alan Ewing, manager, advanced concept development, Bell Helicopter; Capt. Sara Faibisoff, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Lt. Gen. (ret.) William Fitch, USMC; Don Frederickson, former deputy undersecretary of defense for tactical warfare programs; Lynn Freisner, former flight test director, Boeing Helicopter Co.; Troy Gaffey, former vice president engineering, Bell Helicopter; Lee Gaillard, freelance military writer and V-22 critic; Paul Gallagher, former producer, CBS-TV’s 60 Minutes; Maj. Eric Garcia, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Gerald Gard, former Bell Helicopter Washington representative; former Rep. Pete Geren, D-Texas; Maj. (ret.) Pat Gibbons, USMC; Lt. Col. (ret.) Mark Gibson, USMC, former vice president for advanced concept development, Bell Helicopter; Capt. John Gilbert, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Lt. Gen. (ret.) Buster C. Glosson, USAF; Maj. Gen. Kenneth Glueck, USMC; Art Gravley, chief V-22 engineer, Bell Helicopter; David Gribbin, assistant secretary of defense for legislative affairs 1989–1993; Kenneth Grina, former vice president for engineering, Boeing Vertol; Lt. Col. (ret.) Steve Grohsmeyer, USMC, V-22 developmental test pilot; Connie Gruber; John Hamre, deputy secretary of defense 1997–2000; Carl Harris, former Bell Helicopter spokesman; Derek Hart, former structures engineer, Boeing Helicopter Co.; Michael Hirschberg, VSTOL historian and managing editor, Vertiflite; Lt. Col. (ret.) Bob Hodes, USA, military assistant to Undersecretary of the Army Jim Ambrose, 1983; Amoretta Hoeber, former deputy undersecretary of the Army; Roy Hopkins, Bell Helicopter tiltrotor test pilot; Leonard M. “Jack” Horner, former president, Bell Helicopter; Lt. Gen. (ret.) Michael Hough, USMC; Mary Howell, executive vice president, Textron Inc.; Col. (ret.) Tom Huckelbery, USMC; Stevie Jarman; Sue Jarman; Christopher Jehn, former Center for Naval Analyses researcher and assistant secretary of defense for manpower and personnel 1989–93; Webb Joiner, former president, Bell Helicopter; Gen. (ret.) James L. Jones, USMC; Dwayne Jose, former vice president for marketing, Bell Helicopter; Col. (ret.) Matthew Kambrod, USA, former deputy for aviation, office of the assistant secretary of the Army for research, development, and acquisition; Maj. Ken Karika, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Gen. (ret.) P. X. Kelley, USMC; Frank Kendall, former director of tactical warfare programs, office of undersecretary of defense for acquisitions; Col. (ret.) Robert Kenney, USMCR, Bell-Boeing V-22 program manager; Capt. Brett Knickerbocker, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Capt. Stewart Kotlinski, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Maj. David Lane, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Col. (ret.) Robert Lange, USMC, former Boeing Co. lobbyist; Maj. (ret.) Fred Lash, USMC; Thomas Laux, program executive officer, Naval Air Systems Command; Col. (ret.) William S. L
awrence, USMC, former V-22 deputy program manager, Naval Air Systems Command; Lt. Col. Evan LeBlanc, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Martin LeCloux, former Boeing Co. V-22 mechanic; Bob Leder, former Bell-Boeing V-22 spokesman; J. Gordon Leishman, professor of aerospace engineering, University of Maryland; Bill Leonard, former Bell Helicopter V-22 developmental test pilot; Nancy Lifset, former aide to Rep. Curt Weldon, R-Pa.; Col. (ret.) Richard Linhart, USMC, Bell Helicopter marketer; Col. (ret.) Darwin Lundberg, USMC, former Boeing Helicopter marketer; Robert Lynn, former vice president for engineering, Bell Helicopter; Tom Macdonald, Boeing Co. test pilot; Capt. (ret.) Jim Magee, USN, former Bell Helicopter marketer; Gen. (ret.) Robert Magnus, USMC; Ron Magnuson, former Bell Helicopter engineer; Joseph Mallen, former president, Boeing Helicopter Co.; Ven Mantegna, Triple Lab engineer, Boeing Rotorcraft Division; Dr. Hans Mark; John O. Marsh, Jr., secretary of the Army 1981–89; Greg Marshall, composites engineer, Bell Helicopter; Stanley Martin, Jr., former vice president for engineering, Bell Helicopter; Kathi Mayan; Lt. Col. (ret.) Gregory McAdams, USMC, former Boeing Helicopter Co. business development manager; Lt. Gen. (ret.) Fred McCorkle, USMC; Dan McCrary, former vice president for contracts, Bell Helicopter; Thomas C. “Kit” McKeon, former Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. marketer and Bell Helicopter consultant; Capt. Justin McKinney, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Maj. Gen. (ret.) Carl McNair, USA; Tony McVeigh, former Boeing Vertol engineer; Carlton Meyer; Col. (ret.) Parker Miller, USMC; Lt. Gen. (ret.) Thomas H. Miller, Jr., USMC; Maj. Timothy Miller, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Sgt. (ret.) Michael Moffitt, USMC, former MOTT member; Lt. Col. (ret.) Mike Morgan, USMC, former V-22 operational test director; Gen. (ret.) Thomas Morgan, USMC; Douglas Necessary, former House Armed Services Committee aide; Capt. Andrew Norris, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Philip Norwine, former Bell Helicopter marketer; Bob Oertel, Bell Helicopter military marketer; Sean O’Keefe, secretary of the Navy 1992–93; Capt. Elizabeth Okoreeh-Baah, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Col. (ret.) Larry Outlaw, USMC, executive director government affairs, Textron Inc.; Capt. Mike Parrott, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Bill Peck, former director of V-22 engineering, Boeing Helicopter Co.; Lt. Gen. (ret.) Chuck Pitman, USMC; Col. (ret.) Marvin Pixton, USMC, former aide to Lt. Gen. Thomas Miller; Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Poling, USMC, VMM-263 maintainer; Maj. Gen. (ret.) Arnold Punaro, USMCR, former Senate Armed Services Committee staff director; Chief Warrant Officer 2 Carlos Rios, USMC, VMM-263 maintenance chief; Arthur “Rex” Rivolo; Lt. Col. Paul Rock, Jr., USMC; Pete Rose, former aide to Rep. Pete Geren, D-Texas; Hal Rosenstein, chief engineer for advanced rotorcraft, Boeing Rotorcraft Division; Charles Rudning, former Bell Helicopter manager; Bill Rumberger, Boeing Rotorcraft Division engineer; Maj. Gen. (ret.) Mike Ryan, USMC; Lt. Col. Paul Ryan, USMC, VMM-263 executive officer; Jack Satterfield, former Boeing Rotorcraft Division spokesman; Col. (ret.) Jim Schaefer, USMC, former V-22 program manager; Lt. Col. (ret.) Jim Schafer, USMC, former MOTT pilot; Col. (ret.) William Scheuren, USMC, coordinator for rotary wing programs, office of the under-secretary of defense for research and engineering 1980–82; Maj. Todd Schiro, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Col. (ret.) Nolan Schmidt, USMC, former V-22 program manager; Paul Schoellhamer, former House Transportation Committee aide; Allen Schoen, former V-22 technology manager, Boeing Helicopter Co.; Col. (ret.) Daniel Schultz, USMC, former V-22 program manager; Lt. Col. Christopher Seymour, USMC, former V-22 developmental and operational test pilot and Osprey squadron commander; Col (ret.) Jim Shaffer, USAF, former MOTT pilot; Sergei Sikorsky, former Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. executive; Clive Sloan, former Bell Helicopter V-22 program manager; Barbara Smith, former V-22 deputy program manager, Naval Air Systems Command; Larry Smith, former aide to Rep. Les Aspin, D-Wis.; Maj. Wes Spaid, USMC, VMM-263 pilot; Dick Spivey; Eric Spivey; Terry Spivey; Michelle Stecyk Kovtonuk; Maj. Gen. (ret.) Story C. Stevens, USA; Carol Sweaney; Katrina Sweaney; Tommy Thomason, former Bell Helicopter XV-15 program manager; Bob Torgerson, Boeing Rotorcraft Division marketer and former spokesman; Col. J. T. Torres, USMC, former MOTT pilot; David Traynham, House Transportation Committee aide; Sgt. Maj. Grant VanOostrom, USMC, VMM-263; Gail Walters; Brig. Gen. Glenn Walters, USMC, former commanding officer, VMX-22; former Rep. Curt Weldon, R-Pa.; Kenneth G. Wernicke, former Bell Helicopter chief tiltrotor engineer; Rodney Wernicke, former Bell Helicopter engineer; Maj. Gen. (ret.) Randy West, USMC; Lt. Col. (ret.) Mike Westman, USMC, former MOTT pilot; Robert Wichser, former Boeing Helicopter Co. executive; Gen. (ret.) John A. Wickham, Jr., USA; Vice Adm. (ret.) Joseph Wilkinson, USN; Pete Williams, assistant secretary of defense for public affairs 1989–93; Grady Wilson, former Boeing Co. test pilot; David Woodley, former Boeing Vertol engineer; former House Speaker Jim Wright, D- Fort Worth; John Zugschwert, former American Helicopter Society executive director, former vice president, Textron Inc.