Reynoldsburg man among 8 Air Force personnel killed in Osprey crash off coast of Japan
A Reynoldsburg man is among eight U.S. Airmen who died after an aircraft crash off the coast of Japan.
Senior Airman Brian K. Johnson, 32, was on board the CV-22 Osprey aircraft that crashed on Nov. 29 after catching fire over the southern coast of Japan during a training exercise.
Search and rescue operations involving the U.S. and Japanese militaries had been underway since the crash with the bulk of the wreckage being discovered Monday.
The Air Force Special Operations Command identified the eight Airmen on Tuesday.
Johnson was a flight engineer assigned to the 21st Special Operations Squadron, 353rd Special Operations Wing. He was based at Yokota Air Base in Japan.
The other seven Airmen killed in the crash have been identified as: Major Jeffrey Hoernemann, 32, of Minnesota, Major Eric Spendlove, 36, of Utah, Major Luke Unrath, 34, of California, Captain Terrell Brayman, 32, of New York, Technical Sgt. Zachary Lavoy, 33, of Florida, Staff Sgt. Jake Turnage, 25, of Georgia, and Staff Sgt. Jacob Galliher, 24, of Massachusetts.
The remains of three of the airmen have been recovered and recovery of three additional bodies are underway. Two other sets of remains have not yet been located.
bbruner@dispatch.com
@bethany_bruner
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Reynoldsburg man among 8 Air Force personnel killed in Osprey crash
