The parents of 23-year-old Sgt. Alec Langen has identified him as one of five Marines who were tragically killed Tuesday when their CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter crashed in the mountains near San Diego.
In a heartbreaking interview with ABC San Diego, Steve and Caryn Langen revealed that their son got married just over a month before his death. It was his new bride who told his parents that their son had not returned home after the accident.
“He died with the people he wanted to be with, doing what he loved and what he wanted to do,” his father told the station through tears. Their son, an Arizona native, had served as a crew member on the doomed flight.
The grieving father, a former Marine himself, added: “I would give anything to trade places.”
The military confirmed Thursday that all five Marines were killed when their helicopter crashed during stormy weather, and efforts were underway to recover their remains.
Sergeant Alec Langen pictured on his father’s Facebook page. He was 23 years old
In a heartbreaking interview with ABC San Diego, Steve and Caryn Langen revealed that their son got married just over a month before his death.
It was his new bride who told his parents that their son had not returned home after the accident
Marine Corps officials personally notified the families while Marines are stationed at the site 24 hours a day to stay with the remains, said Col. James C. Ford, operations officer with the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San. Diego.
In his interview, Steve Langen revealed that he too had served in the same helicopter as his son for the Marines between 1986 and 1995.
“We’re so grateful to the San Diego first responders that went out there and looked for them and found that crew. Without them they wouldn’t come home,” his mother said.
According to a Facebook post from his mother, Alec married his wife Casey in early January and planned to move to North Carolina where he would be stationed.
Citing the “dangerous terrain and weather” at the site, Ford said ground recovery efforts will take place over the coming weeks while an investigation into the crash is conducted.
Per military policy, the names of the Marines are not released until 24 hours after all next of kin have been notified.
“He died with the people he wanted to be with, doing what he loved and what he wanted to do,” his father said through tears
The Arizona native had served as crew chief on the doomed flight. He is pictured above in another flight
Authorities are still working to recover the Marines’ remains. Sergeant Alec Langen is on the right of the photo
Marine Corps leaders, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and President Joe Biden expressed their condolences.
“It is with a heavy heart and deep sadness that I share the loss of five outstanding Marines from the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and the Flying Tigers,” Maj. Gen. Michael J. Borgschulte, the wing’s commander, said in a statement.
Authorities say the CH-53E Super Stallion disappeared late Tuesday evening during flight training en route back to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego from Creech Air Force Base, northwest of Las Vegas.
The last known contact with the Super Stallion was around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, when waves of downpours and snow hit the region, Mike Cornette of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection told CBS 8 News.
That location was based on a “ping” reported to a Cal Fire dispatcher.
The Navy helicopter left Nevada for San Diego on Tuesday evening
The CH-53E Super Stallion is the heavy helicopter most commonly used by the Marines to transport troops and equipment
Marines fly the model in the “most challenging environments you can imagine,” said Timothy Loranger, a former Marine Corps aircraft mechanic and now a civilian pilot and attorney who specializes in aviation accidents.
“But even knowing that, it’s important that those making the decisions decide whether the risk is worth it,” he said.
“Here was a training mission where the crew flew back to Miramar, so you have to ask yourself, why fly now in this weather? Was this poor judgment or an issue with pilot error? These are very important questions that need to be asked.’
A mechanical problem in bad weather would also make flying even more difficult.
And although the helicopter is designed for bad weather, ice buildup on the rotor blades could disrupt the ability to create lift for the craft and cause it to crash, Loranger said.
All this will be part of the investigation, Loranger said, adding that it is too early to speculate about what happened. He said the Super Stallion has a long history of reliability, but it’s not perfect.
The vessel was discovered Wednesday morning near Pine Valley, an hour’s drive from San Diego.
The helicopter was headed to the Marine Corps Air Station in Miramar, known as the home of the Top Gun program – and the movie of the same name
The mountain community is located at about 3,700 feet elevation in the Cuyamaca Mountains, an area that accumulated as much as 8 inches of snow within hours Tuesday evening and early Wednesday and saw even more snow fall Wednesday evening, forecasters said.
The area includes San Diego County’s second-highest mountain, Cuyamaca Peak, at 6,512 feet, and is also close to the Cleveland National Forest, which covers 720 square miles, much of which is steep, rocky and with limited trails.
The five Marines were assigned to Miramar’s Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing in Miramar.
Capt. Stephanie Leguizamon, spokesperson for the wing, said she had little information beyond the statement, but noted that recovery efforts were hampered by snowfall from the storm that moved out of California on Thursday.
“I do know it’s cold … I know this has been a controversial issue” for searchers reaching the crash site, she said.
The CH-53E Super Stallion is approximately 30 meters long and weighs almost 35 tons. It has been used for more than three decades in combat and other operations around the world, including in Beirut, Somalia, the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, according to a U.S. Navy website.
In 2018, four Marines from Miramar were killed when their Super Stallion crashed during a training mission near El Centro, near the California-Mexico border.
The Marine Corps ruled out pilot error for the accident. The victims’ families later sued two companies they claimed supplied a defective part that they blamed for the crash.
In 2005, a Super Stallion sank during a sandstorm in Iraq, killing 31 people on board. The accident, which was due to pilot error, was the deadliest loss of American troops during the war.
There are more than 130 in use.
Nicknamed the “hurricane maker” because of the downwash of its three engines, the Super Stallion has a range of about 620 miles. It was designed to carry a maximum of 55 troops or approximately 16 tons of cargo.