Marine Corps inspector general suspended amid probe into deadly AAV sinking last summer

[ancianita]

4. Hope this helps. From the LA Times article.

Mechanical issues affected the training mission before it began — one AAV had to stay behind on Somerset due to maintenance problems, according to the Marine Corps’ first investigation.

Problems continued on the island. The Marines were supposed to return to the ship at noon but were delayed when one vehicle broke down. At 5 p.m., nine of the vehicles began the slow cruise back to the Somerset. It wasn’t long before two of those began having issues and returned to the island. The doomed AAV continued toward the ship.

A cascade of mechanical and human failures contributed to the deaths of the eight Marines and one sailor, the Marines found. The vehicle’s transmission failed, then its water drive. Water came in through the vehicle’s engine compartment and a leaking headlight. The loss of its transmission meant the vehicle’s bilge pumps could not expel the water as fast as it was coming in.

The vehicle’s commander waited far too long to order those onboard to evacuate, the investigation found. After 45 minutes, another AAV made it to the floundering vehicle, only to bump into it, causing it to tip into a wave which crashed in through its open top hatch. It then sank rapidly, the investigation says.