Pentagon grounds all Osprey aircraft after fatal crash

Dec. 7 (UPI) -- The Pentagon on Wednesday grounded its entire fleet of V-22 Osprey aircraft while an investigation continues into a deadly crash involving the aircraft near Japan.

Air Force Lt. Gen. Tony Bauernfeind said in a statement that an initial assessment suggested a "potential material failure" caused the crash that killed eight crew members, rather than human error. He stressed, though, that the underlying cause of the crash remains unknown.

"The standdown will provide time and space for a thorough investigation to determine causal factors and recommendations to ensure the Air Force CV-22 fleet returns to flight operations," the statement said.

The Navy and Marine Corps agreed to join the Air Force in grounding flights of all models of the CV-22 while Boeing and Bell, which jointly built the hybrid aircraft told The Washington Post they are "standing by to provide support" if asked.

The CV-22 is a variant of the Osprey V-22 aircraft, which is capable of lifting off and hovering like a helicopter, that is used by the Air Force's Special Operations.

Three U.S. Marines died and others were critically injured in an Osprey crash in Australia in August. In 2022, five Marines died when a MV-22B Osprey crashed during training exercises in California, and four U.S. soldiers were killed when an Osprey crashed during NATO training exercises in Norway.

The decision to ground the Osprey comes as Japan expressed concern last week over continued flights of the aircraft following the Nov. 29 crash off the shore of Yakushima that killed eight crew members.

The United States had initially suspended flights of CV-22 Ospreys, like the one involved in the fatal crash, but had continued regular flights of other models.

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno stressed Friday that Japan had "officially" requested that all flights of the Osprey, except search-and-rescue operations, be halted.

A joint U.S.-Japanese crew of search-and-rescue divers discovered the wreckage of the crashed Osprey, as well as the remains of the crew members over the weekend.

The Pentagon identified those involved in the U.S. crash as Staff Sgt. Jake Galliher, 24; Maj. Jeffrey T. Hoernemann, 32; Maj. Eric Spendlove, 36; Maj. Luke Unrath, 34; Capt. Terrell Brayman, 32; Tech. Sgt. Zachary Lavoy, 33; Staff Sgt. Jake Turnage, 25; and Senior Airman Brian Johnson, 32.