Apparently, the US tilt-rotor V-22 aircraft, popularly known as the “Osprey,” will be deployed for exercises in Kumamoto, and whether the safety history of the plane is cause for concern is under debate. I’m old enough to remember when the prototype version of the aircraft was dubbed “the widowmaker” due to its tendency to suddenly collide with what scientists call “the ground,” but my reptilian statistician brain nagged me for more recent data to support my perception. So here you go: in a nutshell, it depends on which version statistics commence from, but the more recent version of the plane could be termed moderately safer than the helicopter it replaced, the CH-46 “Sea Stallion,” which has been in service since the Vietnam War. So if you’re against the plane flying over your area for safety reasons, you’d logically be against every type of helicopter as well. There are of course other reasons to oppose the overflight of military aircraft, but safety is, at least regarding this plane in relation to others, statistically not a significant one. - William