Questions Continue After Death of 5 Marines, Loss of 2 Aircraft Off Japan.
December 14, 2018 Tom Demerly
“The cause of the crash is under investigation.†It is the boilerplate statement issued in the aftermath of every aviation accident. As U.S Marines maintain this response in the aftermath of another serious aviation accident off the coast of Japanese, the statement prompts an equally common media response, “There are more questions than answers at this time.â€
Six U.S. Marines (including one of the two F/A-18D crew members) died on Dec. 6, in the seventh serious accident in Marine and Naval aviation this year, bringing the list of fatalities in Marine/Navy aircrews to at least 10. The number of aircraft lost in 2018 for the Marines and Navy is at least 8.
The Marine Corps identified the VMGR-152 crew members who died in the accident off Japan as Lt. Col. Kevin R. Herrmann, 38, of New Bern, North Carolina; Maj. James M. Brophy, 36, of Staatsburg, New York; Staff Sgt. Maximo A. Flores, 27, of Surprise, Arizona; Cpl. Daniel E. Baker, 21, of Tremont, Illinois; and Cpl. William C. Ross, 21, of Hendersonville, Tennessee.
https://theaviationist.com/2018/12/14/questions-continue-after-death-of-5-marines-loss-of-2-aircraft-off-japan/
