Posted on 08/02/2020 2:23:52 PM PDT by Libloather
SAN DIEGO (AP) - Eight troops missing after their landing craft sank off the Southern California coast during a training exercise are presumed dead, the Marine Corps announced Sunday.
The Marines said they had called off the search that started late Thursday afternoon when the amphibious assault vehicle sank with 15 Marines and one Navy sailor aboard. Eight Marines were rescued, but one later died and two are in critical condition.
The 26-ton, tank-like craft took on water and quickly sank in hundreds of feet of water - too deep for divers - making it difficult to reach.
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
Normal egress is a ramp that drops in the back.
This is an amphibious assault vehicle. It delivers Marines to the shore and can also be used to ferry supplies from ship to shore.
This vid shows the vehicles launching from the well deck of a ship. at the end of the clip shows the tracs going onto the beach and Marines coming out of them to conduct an assault training exercise.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8cEzVbk9vU
There are also hatches that run down both sides of the top of the vehicle that can be used for various purposes, including emergency exist. Those can be seen in the next vid once the tracs reach the beach and start maneuvering inland.
Beach Landing in Amphibious Assault Vehicles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SW2AwwFDDSU
Sad fact is, not all Marines can swim well, as weird as that sounds. And when loaded up for an assault, Marines are wearing 60 or more pounds of gear, including the armored vest and such that can not be quickly removed.
It’s dangerous work. Always has been. And there but for the grace of God, I’d have gone if a similar accident had occurred when I was riding in those beasts for training purposes.
It’s one of the many things we knew could happen and hoped didn’t happen.
In this vid, at about the 4:30 mark, you can see Marines exiting the amtracs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1DNovXUTIw
RIP Boys
That's an insult.
IIRC Marines go through similar training.One would think that Sailors and Marines were skilled in water emergencies or else they might have been separated.
It's certainly desperately sad to hear about this incident!
Every day, all day and night there are Soldiers, Marines, Sailors and Airmen strapping on or in and putting their lives at risk quietly while the rest of us fret about something or other, usually inconsequential, relatively speaking.
Thank you for your selfless service.
They pause for a moment, maybe wipe a tear, then resume the risky business of standing watch over their nation.
Lest we forget.
Be insulted. But don’t be petty. Troops is a generic term.
Thanks for your service, if applicable.
Indeed, APCs and Brads swam ponds or rivers and the cargo hatches remained open. These guys button up or for sure the will take breaking waves....
Yes, I also drove the M113 50 years ago, back in the 70’s.
It’s amphibious qualities were questionable at the least.
More than once had to wait for a retriever to come and
pull us out of a swamp or a ditch.
Company Commander not happy.
Preparing for the Lammas Day sacrifice.
Joke?
If they can retrieve part of Soviet nuclear sub (the Hughes Global Surveyor operation), they’ll bring up that amtrak once the resources are in place. My guess is they’ll bring it up before the week is out.
No. Although I doubt they realized it.
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