Photo: The Canadian Press All five Marines aboard an Osprey were killed when the plane crashed in the California desert near the Arizona border, the Marine Corps said Thursday, a day after the crash. No additional details are provided in the announcement of the Marine Corps. The MV-22B Osprey crashed at 12:25 a.m. Wednesday during training in a remote area of Imperial County near Glamis, about 115 miles east of San Diego. The aircraft was based at Camp Pendleton with Marine Aircraft Group 39 and was part of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing based at the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, said Maj Mason Englehart, a wing spokesman. The Osprey is a hybrid airplane and helicopter that has been criticized for its safety history. It can take off and land like a helicopter but pass as a turbine-powered aircraft. The aircraft versions fly from the Marine Corps, the Navy and the Air Force. Prior to Wednesday’s crash, the Osprey crashes had caused 46 deaths, the Los Angeles Times reported. Most recently, four Marines were killed when an Osprey of the Marine Corps crashed on March 18 near a Norwegian town in the Arctic Circle while participating in a NATO exercise. In 2017, three Marines were killed when their MV-22B Osprey crashed off the coast of Queensland, Australia. In 2015, one Marine was killed and 21 were injured when an MV-22 Osprey caught fire during a “hard landing” in Hawaii. Osprey is a joint project of Bell Helicopter Textron and Boeing. Its development was marked by deadly crashes, including an accident in April 2000 in Arizona that killed 19 Marines.
