The grounding of the aircraft comes after crashes within a period of seven days in California this month that resulted in six deaths. The day will be used to “review risk management practices and conduct training in threat and error management procedures,” the Navy said on Saturday. “In order to maintain the readiness of our force, we must ensure that the safety of our people remains one of our top priorities,” the Navy said, adding that the units would also conduct a security check “as soon as possible.” On June 3, a Navy pilot was killed when his F / A-18E Super Hornet crashed in a remote uninhabited area near Trona, California, approximately 170 miles northeast of Los Angeles. The pilot, Lieutenant Richard Bullock, was on a training mission, the Navy said. On June 8, another military plane crashed, killing five U.S. Marines. The Marine Corps said the plane, an MV-22B Osprey belonging to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, crashed near Glamis, California, more than 150 miles east of San Diego. The next day, a Navy helicopter crashed near El Centro, California, more than 100 miles east of San Diego. The helicopter, an MH-60S Seahawk, was also conducting a training flight, the Navy said. All four crew members survived. One was taken to hospital for non-life-threatening injuries, the Navy said. Authorities say they are investigating all three accidents, each of which occurred during routine exercise. So far, there has been nothing linking the crashes, Cmdr. Jacques Harrell, a spokesman for the San Diego-based Naval Air Force, said. “If anything comes out of the investigation that indicates there is a connection, it will be addressed immediately,” he said. He said there have been safety pauses in the past, usually after many accidents in a short period of time. The last time the Navy withdrew aircraft that had not been deployed for security reasons was in October 2020, said Commander Harel. The quake was followed by two crashes, one of which resulted in two deaths. There have been nine of what the military considers to be the most serious crashes – one resulting in $ 2.5 million or more in property damage, deaths or permanent disability – in the Navy and Marine Corps this year, Commander Harrell added. He described the latest accidents as “unusual”. In March, four Marines were killed in Norway during a NATO training exercise. They were flying an MV-22B, the same plane that crashed on June 8. In late March, a small Navy aircraft, an E-2D Hawkeye, also crashed along Virginia’s Eastern Shore, killing one crew member and injuring two others. On Friday, the U.S. Marine Corps released the names of those killed in the June 8 crash: Cpl. Nathan E. Carlson, 21; Capt. Nicholas P. Losapio, 31; Cpl. Seth D. Rasmuson, 21; Lance Cpl. Evan A. Strickland, 19; and Captain John J. Sax, 33, the son of Steve Sax, a former Los Angeles Dodgers baseball player. Mr Sachs said on Instagram that his son liked being a Marine. “He liked to serve this country,” Sax wrote. “He is and will always be my hero.” Luke Vander Ploeg contributed to the report.
