Reports indicate three US Marines were killed, and several others were injured after a military chopper carrying twenty crashed in Australia early Sunday morning.
During a training exercise in Australia’s Northern Territory, the MV-22B Osprey chopper carrying U.S. Marines crashed. The situation is dire for some US Marines.
Australia’s Department of Defense confirmed to US media that an aircraft mishap took place on Melville Island in the middle of the morning on August 27 as part of Exercise Predator’s Run 2023. Melville Island is located north of Darwin. According to initial accounts, the event appears to involve members of the United States military, and the Australian Defense Force was not involved.
A report shows the military plane crashed on the Tiwi Islands north of Darwin, and several of the occupants had to be rescued. According to a statement released by the Marine Rotational Force in Darwin, three persons were killed, and five were seriously injured in a U.S. Marine Corps MV-22B Osprey accident on Melville Island. The issue is being investigated, and efforts to recover it are ongoing.
Police Commissioner for the Northern Territory, Michael Murphy, told reporters they are still working to get the other casualties to the hospital. The United States Marine Corps and the Australian Defence Force both contributed to the mission.
A Department of Defense spokeswoman told the media in a statement that
they were aware of the public reporting on this, but they did not have anything to add at the time.
Australian media report that in the wake of the crash, Predators’ Run workouts have been suspended. Roughly 2,500 people are participating in the drills, including 500 Americans, 120 Indonesians, 50 Timorese, and 120 Filipinos.
A report revealed the names of the three members of the United States Marine Corps who were killed in the accident: Major Tobin Lewis, age 37, crew chief Corporal Spencer Collart, age 21, and pilot Captain Eleanor LeBeau, age 29.
