U.S. Navy orders grounding of all Osprey aircraft after 8 died in crash off Japan

The US military has ordered the grounding of its entire fleet of V-22 Ospreys, a week after eight airmen died aboard a CV-22 that crashed off the coast of Japan.

On Wednesday evening, Air Force Special Operations Command said Lt. Gen. Tony Bauernfeind, the group's commander, had directed an “operational withdrawal” of the Air Force's CV-22 fleet.

The grounding was put in place to “mitigate risk while the investigation continues.”

Out of an “abundance of caution,” the Naval Air Systems Command said it will also ground the Navy and Marine Corps V-22s.

A Navy statement said the preliminary investigation into the crash “indicates that a possible equipment failure caused the accident, but the underlying cause of the failure is unknown at this time.”

The plane was conducting a “routine training mission” when it crashed. Although the fatal incident remains under investigation, the aircraft has a history of mechanical problems and has been involved in a number of fatal accidents in recent decades.

A V-22 Osprey with eight airmen on board crashed off a Japanese island last week, killing everyone on board. The crash is under investigation by the Pentagon

According to CNN, three US Marines were killed in an MV-22 Osprey during an exercise in Australia in August.

The bodies of six of the eight pilots aboard the doomed Osprey have been recovered after last week's crash. Three of them have been identified.

Staff Sgt. Jake Galliher, 24, was identified as the first pilots in the crash. Earlier this week, Maj. Luke Unrath, 34, and Tech Sgt. Zachary Lavoy, 33, was identified as two more men aboard the Osprey.

In an earlier statement, Bauernfeind said the “honorable service of these eight airmen to this great nation will never be forgotten.”

“In times like these, when service to our nation is not only a personal commitment but also a legacy woven into the fabric of our families, the depth of grief is immeasurable.”

The AFSOC said Wednesday that after personnel recovery operations, the team “will focus its efforts on salvaging the remaining aircraft debris.”

After the tragic crash, the government of Japan's Okinawa Prefecture requested that all ospreys on or near the island be grounded, although the Pentagon denied receiving an official request.

“Right now, the Ospreys are still active in Japan,” Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said last week. “I am not following any official request received here in the department.”

Japan Coast Guard helicopter and patrol vessel conduct search and rescue operations in the waters where a US military Osprey aircraft crashed off the coast of Yakushima Island, Kagoshima Prefecture, southern Japan, Thursday, November 30, 2023

The plane has a history of mechanical and operational problems and was involved in several fatal crashes before last week

Versions of the V-22 Osprey are used by the armed forces, including the Marines, Air Force, Navy and Japan's Ground Self Defense Force, which uses a Japanese model of the aircraft.

According to Boeing's description of the V-22, it cannot take off, land and hover like a helicopter. Once airborne, it can be converted into a turboprop aircraft that can fly at high speeds at high altitudes.”

“This combination results in global range capabilities that allow the V-22 to fill an operational niche unlike any other aircraft.”