5 Marines killed in plane crash in California desert
All five Marines aboard an Osprey plane were killed when it crashed in the California desert near the Arizona border, the Marine Corps said Thursday, a day after the crash. No additional details regarding the cause of the crash were provided in the Marine Corps statement. .The MV-22 Osprey descended at 12:25 p.m. Wednesday during training in a remote area of Imperial County near the community of Glamis, about 115 miles east of San Diego and about 50 miles from Yuma , Arizona.The aircraft was based at Camp Pendleton with Marine Aircraft Group 39 and was part of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing headquartered at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego. “We mourn the loss of our Marines in this tragic misadventure,” Maj. Gen. Bradford J. Gering, commanding general of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, said in a statement. “Our hearts go out to their families and friends as they deal with this tragedy.” Efforts to recover material were underway and an investigation has begun. The Osprey, a hybrid aircraft and helicopter, has been criticized as dangerous. It is designed to take off like a helicopter, rotate its propellers to a horizontal position, and cruise like an airplane. Versions of the aircraft are flown by the Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force. Prior to Wednesday’s crash, Osprey crashes had caused 46 fatalities, the Los Angeles Times reported. More recently, four Marines were killed when a Marine Corps Osprey crashed March 18 near a Norwegian town in the Arctic Circle while taking part in a NATO exercise. In 2017, three Marines were killed when their MV-22 Osprey crashed off Queensland, Australia. In 2015, a Marine was killed and 21 injured when their MV-22 Osprey caught fire during a “hard landing” in Hawaii. The Osprey is a joint project of Bell Helicopter Textron and Boeing. Its development was marked by fatal accidents, including an April 2000 crash in Arizona that killed 19 Marines. ___ Baldor reported from Washington.
All five Marines aboard an Osprey plane were killed when it crashed in the California desert near the Arizona border, the Marine Corps said Thursday, a day after the crash.
No additional details regarding the cause of the crash were provided in the Marine Corps statement.
The MV-22 Osprey crashed at 12:25 p.m. Wednesday while training in a remote area of Imperial County near the community of Glamis, about 185 miles east of San Diego and about 80 miles from Yuma, Ariz.
The aircraft was based at Camp Pendleton with Marine Aircraft Group 39 and was part of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing headquartered at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego.
“We mourn the loss of our Marines in this tragic accident,” Maj. Gen. Bradford J. Gering, commanding general of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, said in a statement. “Our hearts go out to their families and friends as they deal with this tragedy.”
The statement said that, as a matter of principle, the Marine Corps will contact family members before identifying those killed. Efforts to recover material were underway and an investigation has begun.
The Osprey, a hybrid aircraft and helicopter, has been criticized as dangerous. It is designed to take off like a helicopter, rotate its propellers to a horizontal position, and cruise like an airplane.
Versions of the aircraft are flown by the Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force.
Prior to Wednesday’s crash, Osprey crashes had claimed 46 lives, the Los Angeles Times reported.
More recently, four Marines were killed when a Marine Corps Osprey crashed March 18 near a Norwegian town in the Arctic Circle while taking part in a NATO exercise. In 2017, three Marines were killed when their MV-22 Osprey crashed off Queensland, Australia. In 2015, a Marine was killed and 21 injured when their MV-22 Osprey caught fire during a “hard landing” in Hawaii.
The Osprey is a joint project of Bell Helicopter Textron and Boeing.
Its development was marred by fatal accidents, including an accident in April 2000 in Arizona that killed 19 Marines.
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Baldor reported from Washington.