Opening Statement (As Prepared)
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Thank you, Chairman Kelly and Chairman Bergman, for organizing this afternoon’s hearing. And thank you to Admiral Dougherty, General Walsh, and Ms. Moldafsky for joining us to discuss this urgent issue that pertains to the safety of our warfighters and the need for a platform that can transport troops and equipment and conduct search and rescue with speed and range.
The V-22 program has been a focus of the Armed Services Committee after a catastrophic crash in Japan in November 2023, which occurred on the heels of fatal accidents in June 2022 and August 2023. Under both chairs we have had briefings in the Armed Services Committee, and a request was made for GAO to conduct a review of the V-22. Today, this hearing follows the issuance of both Naval Air System Command and the Government Accountability Offices’ independent reviews of the V-22 program.
As I have stated in prior proceedings, I view these reviews in the same light as the reviews that were conducted by Congress and the Navy after the catastrophic collisions in 2017 of the USS Fitzgerald and USS McCain. Like the V-22 mishaps, Fitzgerald and McCain resulted in an unacceptable loss of life of service members who were performing their jobs in a peacetime environment. As those collisions were indicative of systemic issues with our surface fleet, V-22 is indicative of broader systemic issues with Navy and Marine aircraft readiness. In 2017, those avoidable ship collisions were the focus of scrupulous oversight by Congress, and the Navy’s collaboration with congressional oversight led to systematic improvements. In fact, and at the insistence of Senator John McCain, the recommendations of the Navy’s Comprehensive Review were actually codified in the National Defense Authorization Act. That intervention has ensured that seamen are fully qualified before going underway and resulted in an appreciable drop in mishaps.
After the CV-22 crash off the coast of Japan in 2023, the services grounded the planes and incorporated various new maintenance and safety protocols, such as a redesigned gearbox and triple-melt steel components, to mitigate deadly risk. While these protocols thus far are successful in preventing loss of life or total loss of aircraft, mechanical issues still plague the program.
Significant sustainment investments, particularly in repair and spare parts, will need to be made to ensure V-22s operate safely. I look forward to working with the services and the joint program office as the Department lays out this continued investment in the fiscal year 2027 budget request.
Mechanical readiness is just one element of the V-22s’ issues. Effective and open communication with the JPO and the services—as well as our allies operating aircraft variants—is critical to fix this program. One of the key findings of the GAO report was that “military services have not proactively shared information from hazard and accident reporting with Osprey units…across the military services,” The Department concurred with this recommendation, but GAO subsequently assesses that the Comprehensive Review does not adequately address it. Admiral Dougherty, I was pleased to hear last week about the improved communication and review structure within the Navy for this aircraft and encourage the service to continue. Routine meetings are just the start though, and I hope this hearing is used as an opportunity to lay out a structured, systemic upgrade in communications and information sharing that the services are undergoing for the V-22.
I remain open to the possibility of exploring legislative action to codify elements of these recommendations, like in the aftermath of the 2017 surface collisions. The possibility of legislative action to codify elements of these recommendations, like in the aftermath of the 2017 surface vessel collisions, would send a powerful message to our service members and the public that real change is happening. If undertaken, I hope this task is something the Department and this committee can work together on to enable the services to operate readily and effectively and protect the safety of our service members.
With that I yield back.