Three Marines had been killed when an plane crashed on an island off Australia’s northern coast, the Marine Corps mentioned in a press release Sunday.
The MV-22B Osprey, tiltrotor plane got here down “whereas transporting troops throughout a routine coaching train,” on Melville Island, north of Darwin, the assertion mentioned.
5 others in “critical situation” had been transported to the Royal Darwin Hospital about 60 miles to the south of the island, the assertion mentioned. “There have been a complete of 23 personnel on board,” it added.
A spokesperson confirmed to NBC Information that every one of these on board had been Marines.
“The Marines aboard the plane had been flying in help of Train Predators Run,” the assertion mentioned, including that “the reason for the incident is below investigation.”
Lots of of troops from the U.S., Australia, the Philippines, East Timor and Indonesia are collaborating within the train which focuses on Melville which is a part of the Tiwi Islands.
Round 150 U.S. Marines are at the moment based mostly in Darwin and as much as 2,500 rotate by town yearly.
Calling it a “tragic incident,” Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese informed a information convention that his authorities’s focus was “very a lot on incident response and on ensuring that each help and help is given.”
He added his authorities and protection division had been “additionally very a lot targeted on offering that sensible help on the bottom.”
At a joint information convention, with Northern Territory Chief Minister Natasha Fyles, the area’s Police Commissioner Michael Murphy mentioned helicopters and fixed-wing plane had been deployed to return the remainder of the injured from the distant location.
The Osprey that crashed was one among two that had flown from Darwin to Melville on Sunday, Murphy mentioned.
“We acknowledge that it is a horrible incident,” Fyles added. “The Northern Territory authorities stands by to supply no matter help is required.”
Army cooperation between the U.S. and Australia has ramped up in recent times. 4 Australian troopers had been killed throughout workout routines final month when their helicopter crashed into the ocean off the coast of Queensland.
