Moment US Osprey military helicopter crashes into warship killing three marines
The MV-22 Osprey helicopter has been involved in 51 fatalities since 1989
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Your support makes all the difference.New footage has emerged of the moment a US Osprey helicopter crashed into a warship, killing three marines onboard.
The clip shows the chopper struggling to land on the deck of the US Green Bay in Queensland, Australia, before plunging into the ocean during the fatal incident in 2017.
First Lieutenant Benjamin Cross, 26, Corporal Nathaniel Ordway, 21, and Private Ruben Velasco, 19, died in the crash after being trapped in the cockpit as it sank.
The helicopter was carrying 26 members of the Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 265, and Mr Cross was co-piloting the aircraft at the time of the crash.
An investigation into the fatal incident found that Mr Cross and his unnamed co-pilot were not at fault and said a technical issue had caused the crash.
The footage shows the helicopter suddenly inclining to the left as it approached the army bay, then hitting the deck.
Marines can be heard shouting “get back” as the MV-22 aircraft narrowly misses on-deck crews before dropping over 10 metres into the Pacific Ocean.
A hole in the cockpit of the damaged aircraft then flooded with water, causing it to sink, and the bodies of the three personnel were recovered following a 12 hour search.
The crash is considered as one of the worst military disasters in Queensland’s history.
The MV-22 Osprey helicopter has been involved in multiple fatal accidents since it’s first flight in 1989, killing a total of 51 service personnel.
In June, five people were killed after another Osprey chopper crashed in California, US.
Nicholas Losapio, 31, Seth Rasmuson, 21, John Sax, 33, and Evan Strickland, 19, were confirmed dead by US Marine Corps on Friday following the crash.
Nathan Carlson was also confirmed to be dead by his family on Thursday.
An investigation into what caused the incident is ongoing.
Four more people were killed in an accident involving an Osprey jet in March, during a NATO training exercise in Norway.
The MV-22 Osprey helicopter is a tiltrotor aircraft, built by Boeing, and is designed to fly like a plane and hover like a chopper.
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