Officials on Friday identified five Marines who died when the CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter carrying them crashed in the mountains of Southern California.
Authorities launched a search for the Marines after they left Nevada’s Creech Air Force Base on Tuesday en route to California’s Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. On Wednesday, officials said their helicopter was “reported overdue” as heavy rain and strong winds from an atmospheric river storm pounded parts of Southern California.
On the morning of Wednesday, searchers found the CH-54E Super Stallion helicopter the Marines were traveling in. The next day, authorities confirmed their deaths.
5 Marines confirmed dead after military helicopter crash in California
The five were identified as
- Lance Cpl. Donovan Davis, 21, of Olathe, Kansas: A CH-53E helicopter crew chief who enlisted in the Marine Corps on Sept. 3, 2019.
- Sgt. Alec Langen, 23, of Chandler, Arizona: A CH-53E helicopter crew chief who enlisted in the Marine Corps on Oct. 1, 2022.
- Capt. Benjamin Moulton, 27, of Emmett, Idaho: A CH-53E helicopter pilot who commissioned in the Marine Corps on March 29, 2019.
- Capt. Jack Casey, 26, of Dover, New Hampshire: A CH-53E helicopter pilot who commissioned in the Marine Corps on May 16, 2019.
- Capt. Miguel Nava, 28, of Traverse City, Michigan: A CH-53E helicopter pilot who commissioned in the Marine Corps on May 26, 2017.