(NewsNation) — An overnight search shifted into a rescue mission as crews worked to locate five Marines who were aboard one of the military’s most powerful helicopters when its debris was found near San Diego.
The Super Stallion helicopter, renowned for its capacity to carry heavy equipment, went down after taking off from a base in Nevada en route to San Diego. The wreckage was discovered near its intended landing site, prompting concerns about the fate of the occupants.
Rich Martindell, a former Air Force accident investigator, emphasized the challenges posed by the site’s remote and rugged terrain.
“Military personnel are trained to remain with the aircraft after a crash,” Martindell stated in an interview on “Elizabeth Vargas Reports,” noting the difficulties in accessing the area due to adverse weather conditions.
The Super Stallion or CH-53E, the largest and heaviest helicopter in the U.S. military arsenal, has been integral to various operations, including those in Somalia, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Despite the Super Stallion’s extensive use by Marines worldwide, concerns over its safety record have emerged as there have been three incidents in the past decade. Martindell cited accident rates higher than the average for marine helicopters, attributing the disparity to mission demands and mechanical issues.
“The normal rate for marine helicopters is about 2.2 accidents per 100,000 hours. The sea stallion is running about 5.9. So it’s almost two times more dangerous than the average helicopter,” Martindell said.
In 2014, a CH-53E crashed while trying to land on a transport dock at sea; however, all 25 people on board survived. In 2016, two CH-53Es crashed into each other during a training exercise near Hawaii, killing 12 Marines. In 2018, a CH-53E crashed during training in California, killing four Marines.
Nighttime operations compounded the challenges, with weather conditions described as “atrocious.” Low visibility and high winds hindered search efforts, delaying the discovery of the crash site by six hours.
“I don’t know that they’ve actually had somebody on the ground there because of the weather and the terrain,” he said.
Questions linger over the potential role of weather in the crash, particularly in light of reports of a rare tornado warning in San Diego earlier in the day.
“They’re going to investigate the whole gamut of possibilities,” he said.