U.S. Air Force Grounds CV-22 Osprey Fleet following Mishap in Japan

The U.S. Air Force has ordered a grounding of the CV-22 Osprey fleet following the November 29 crash in the sea off near Yakushima, Japan in which 8 U.S. personnel were killed.

“Lt. Gen. Tony Bauernfeind, AFSOC commander, directed an operational standdown of the Air Force CV-22 fleet Dec. 6, 2023, to mitigate risk while the investigation continues on the Nov. 29, 2023, CV-22 mishap,” a U.S.A.F. release said.

Preliminary investigation information indicates a potential materiel failure caused the mishap, but the underlying cause of the failure is unknown at this time.

The standdown will provide time and space for a thorough investigation to determine causal factors and recommendations to ensure the Air Force CV-22 fleet returns to flight operations.