Washington (January 11, 2024) – Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), along with Chairman Richard Neal (MA-01), released the following statement after the Government Accountability Office (GAO) agreed to probe the safety record of the V-22 Osprey program. In December 2023, the Massachusetts lawmakers called on the Department of Defense to examine the safety of the V-22 Osprey aircraft and its operation in the Air Force, Marine, Corps, and Navy.

In November 2023, Air Force Staff Sgt. Jacob Galliher of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, was killed in a V-22 Osprey crash in the Pacific, along with seven other service members. Since the V-22 Osprey’s initial development and entry into service in 2007, it has been involved in 14 crashes that caused 54 deaths. In just the last two years, in several V-22 Osprey accidents, 13 service members have died, including another Massachusetts constituent, Marine Corps Capt. Ross A. Reynolds.

“We are pleased that the GAO will be investigating the safety record of the V-22 Osprey program. This is an important step to get answers for the Galliher family and everyone who has been affected by ongoing and serious safety issues. Staff Sergeant Galliher served our nation with honor and pride, and our hearts are with every community that has lost a service member to senseless accidents involving the V-22 Ospreys. We look forward to responses from the Department of Defense to our December letter, and we will continue to do everything in our power to prevent such tragedies from ever happening again.”

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