V-22 Osprey carrying 23 Marines crashes, causing multiple casualties on indigenous-owned foreign island.
Multiple Casualties After V-22 Osprey Carrying 23 Marines Crashes Onto Indigenous-Owned Foreign Island
A United States Marine Corps aircraft crashed on a north Australian island Sunday, resulting in a tragic incident that claimed the lives of three Marines and left 20 others injured during a training exercise, officials have confirmed.
According to a statement from the Marines, the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft crashed around 9:30 a.m. local time Sunday on Melville Island. Of the 23 individuals on board, three were pronounced dead at the crash site, while five were flown in serious condition to the mainland city of Darwin, about 50 miles away, for immediate hospital treatment.
“Recovery efforts are ongoing,” the statement said, adding that the cause of the crash is currently under investigation.
An audio recording of a conversation between a U.S. military official and Australian air traffic controllers revealed that there was a “significant fire in the vicinity of the crash site,” as reported by Nine News television.
Helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft have been deployed to transport the remaining injured individuals from the remote location back to safety, according to Northern Territory Police Commissioner Michael Murphy.
As of now, one of the injured Marines is undergoing surgery at the Royal Darwin Hospital, stated Northern Territory Chief Minister Natasha Fyles, approximately six hours after the crash occurred.
“We acknowledge that this is a terrible incident,” Fyles expressed. “The Northern Territory government stands ready to offer whatever assistance is required.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed that only Americans were injured in the crash, which took place during Exercise Predators Run. This exercise involves the militaries of the United States, Australia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and East Timor.
Currently, there are approximately 150 U.S. Marines stationed in Darwin, with up to 2,500 rotating through the city each year. This realignment of forces in the Asia-Pacific region is primarily aimed at addressing an increasingly assertive China.
The 12-day exercise, which encompasses land, sea, and air operations, is scheduled to conclude on September 7.
“The initial reports suggest that the incident involves just U.S. defense force personnel,” Albanese stated. “Our focus as a government and as the department of defense is very much on incident response and on making sure that every support and assistance is given at this difficult time.”
The Osprey is a unique hybrid aircraft that takes off and lands like a helicopter but can rotate its propellers forward during flight, allowing it to cruise at higher speeds like an airplane. It is utilized by the U.S. Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force.
Prior to this incident, there have been five fatal crashes involving Marine Ospreys since 2012, resulting in a total of 16 deaths.
The most recent crash occurred in June 2022, claiming the lives of five Marines in a fiery accident in a remote area of California. A crash investigation report released last month attributed the tragedy to a mechanical failure related to a clutch.
The report also revealed that there have been 16 similar clutch problems with Marine Ospreys in flight since 2012. However, since February, when the Marine Corps began replacing a specific piece of equipment on the aircraft, no further issues have arisen.
Melville Island, where the crash took place, is part of the Tiwi Islands and is the focal point of the ongoing exercise involving 2,500 troops. The island is indigenous-owned and predominantly covered by tropical woodland, with a population of approximately 1,000, mostly indigenous people.
According to Murphy, the crashed Osprey was one of two that had flown from Darwin to Melville on Sunday.
Darwin, with a population of about 150,000, is a major city in Australia’s sparsely populated tropical north. However, incidents involving multiple casualties can strain the resources of its main hospital.
As a precautionary measure, the hospital has been placed on its highest possible emergency alert, which may impact the treatment of less urgent medical cases, as stated by Fyles.
The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.
The post Multiple Casualties After V-22 Osprey Carrying 23 Marines Crashes Onto Indigenous-Owned Foreign Island appeared first on The Western Journal.
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