WASHINGTON — The U.S. Marine Corps has identified the four Marines who died when their Osprey aircraft crashed Friday night in a Norwegian town in the Arctic Circle during a NATO exercise.
The men, all assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 261, Marine Aircraft Group 26, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing stationed on Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina, were identified as:
— Capt. Matthew J. Tomkiewicz, 27, of Fort Wayne, Indiana.
— Capt. Ross A. Reynolds, 27, of Leominster, Massachusetts.
— Gunnery Sgt. James W. Speedy, 30, of Cambridge, Ohio.
— Cpl. Jacob M. Moore, 24, of Catlettsburg, Kentucky.
In a statement issued Sunday night, a Marine Corps spokesman said the bodies were removed from the crash site and were in the process of being returned to the U.S.
The cause of the crash remained under investigation, but Norwegian police reported bad weather in the area.
Officials in Norway said the MV-22B Osprey crashed in Graetaedalen in Beiarn, south of Bodoe.
Sgt. Speedy joined the Marine Corps on June 15, 2009 and has earned two gold stars, several medals and multiple certificates and letters of appreciation, according to the II Marine Expeditionary Force.
He served as an administrative specialist and was stationed on Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina.
