US military: 5 marines killed in plane crash in the desert

SAN DIEGO – On Thursday, a day after the crash, the Marine Corps said all five Marines aboard an Osprey plane were killed when it crashed in the California desert near the Arizona border.

The MV-22 Osprey went down on Wednesday at 12:25 p.m. during training in a remote area in Imperial County, near the community of Glamis, about 115 miles (185 kilometers) east of San Diego and about 50 miles (80 kilometers) from Yuma. ) was away. 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.

The Commanding General of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Major General Bradford J. “We mourn the loss of our marines in this tragic accident,” Gering said in a statement. “Our hearts are with their families and friends as they cope with this tragedy.”

Under the policy, the Marine Corps will contact family members before identifying those killed, the statement said. Efforts were on to recover the equipment and an investigation into the cause of the accident has been initiated. No additional details were provided in the Marine Corps statement.

Marine Major Mason Englehart, spokesman for the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, said the Marines were participating in a routine live-fire training at their gunnery range in the Imperial Valley desert.

The Osprey, a hybrid airplane and helicopter, flew in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but was criticized by some as unsafe. It is designed to fly like a helicopter, rotate its propeller in a horizontal position, and cruise like an airplane.

Versions of the aircraft are flown by the Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force.

The Los Angeles Times reported that prior to Wednesday’s crash, there were 46 fatalities in Osprey accidents.

Recently, four Marines were killed when a Marine Corps Osprey crashed near a Norwegian city in the Arctic Circle on March 18 while participating in NATO exercises. In 2017, three Marines were killed when their MV-22 Osprey crashed in Queensland, Australia. In 2015, a Marine was killed and 21 injured when his MV-22 Osprey caught fire during a “hard landing” in Hawaii.