US Marine from Long Beach, CA, Killed in Philippines Plane Crash
Sgt. Jacob M. Durham, 22, of Long Beach, California, has been identified as one of four individuals killed in a plane crash in the southern Philippines on Thursday, The Associated Press reports.
The aircraft, contracted by the US military, crashed in a rice field in Maguindanao del Sur province.
Military officials at Camp Pendleton, California, stated that Sgt. Durham died while conducting a routine mission “providing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance support at the request of our Philippine allies.” The cause of the crash is currently under investigation.
Three defense contractors were also killed in the incident, according to military officials.
The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines confirmed the crash of the light plane in Ampatuan town. Ameer Jehad Tim Ambolodto, a safety officer of Maguindanao del Sur, confirmed that the bodies of all four individuals were recovered from the wreckage.
US forces have been stationed in a Philippine military camp in the southern Philippines for decades, providing training and assistance to Filipino forces combating Muslim militants in the region, which is predominantly Muslim within the largely Roman Catholic nation.
According to Windy Beaty, a provincial disaster-mitigation officer, residents reported seeing smoke emanating from the plane and hearing an explosion before it crashed approximately half a mile from a cluster of farmhouses.
Sgt. Durham served as an electronic intelligence/electromagnetic warfare analyst assigned to 1st Radio Battalion, I Marine Expeditionary Force Information Group. He enlisted in the Marines in January 2021 and was promoted to his current rank on February 1st of this year.
His military accolades include the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, a Meritorious Mast, and Naval Aircrew Insignia.
