After a military helicopter crashed during training operations in Australia, three US marines were killed and 20 were hurt.
On its journey to the isolated Tiwi islands north of Darwin, the MV-22B Osprey crashed. According to reports, five of the marines are in serious condition.
Predators Run, which had 2,500 troops from the US, Australia, the Philippines, East Timor, and Indonesia, was where they were participating.
On board the aircraft, there was just US personnel.
On Melville Island, to the north of Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory, the tragedy happened on Sunday.
Anthony Albanese, the prime minister of Australia, called the tragedy terrible and pledged to help the injured in any way possible.
According to Michael Murphy, the local police commissioner, "Five marines have been sent back to Darwin for treatment with the remainder being triaged at the scene."
Additional law enforcement and military personnel have been sent to Melville Island to assist with operations, treat injured persons and send them back to Darwin, as well as maintain the crash site while investigations are ongoing.
In less than a month, there have been two tragic helicopter crashes occurring during joint training in northern Australia.
Exercise Talisman Sabre, the largest bilateral military training exercise between Australia and the US, was taking place when a 45 MRH-90 Taipan carrying four Australian soldiers crashed off the coast of Queensland on July 29. All four soldiers were assumed dead at the time.
The Osprey is a hybrid aircraft that combines characteristics of helicopters and turbo-prop planes, allowing it to move much more quickly than a traditional helicopter.
However, it has a checkered past, with a catastrophic crash in Norway last year that claimed the lives of four marines. In 2017, three more people perished when their aircraft collided with a transport ship off the coast of northern Australia.
