Media outlets like the Los Angeles Times, UPI, and The Hill are calling MCAS Miramar-based Marine Corps Cpl. Jordan L. Spears, 21, the first casualty of the U.S. military's campaign against ISIS (also called ISIL and the Islamic State).
As Home Post reported last week, Spears was lost at sea Oct. 1 after he bailed out of a MV-22B Osprey after the aircraft appeared to lose power after taking off from the USS Makin Island in the North Arabian Sea.
The Navy said the aircraft was supporting operations against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria when it went down, making Cpl. Spears the first casualty associated with the operation.
The U.S. Naval Forces Central Command reports Spears was assigned to Marine Tiltrotor Squadron 163, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, I Marine Expeditionary Force at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
The young Marine was originally from Memphis, Indiana. He is survived by his parents and five siblings, including a twin brother. San Diego television station NBC7 spoke with Spears' father by phone, and put together this report:
