It was a routine training mission on August 15 for the Marines on the KC-130J when suddenly they lost pressure at 21,000 feet — what came next was five service members being hospitalized for decompression sickness symptoms, according to UPI.
The KC-130 flew out of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar from the Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron (VMGR-352) in the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. The aircraft departed on Tuesday from Miramar with 46 passengers aboard on a routine training mission, according to a Marine Corps news release.
When the loss of pressure occurred, the air crew safely returned the plane to MCAS Miramar.
Five service members displayed symptoms the next day: four Marines and one sailor from 3rd Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion based out of Camp Pendleton. They were all brought to the Naval Medical Center San Diego where they were treated and released, according to the news source.
The Marine Corps is currently investigating the incident.
Historically, the KC-130 aircraft has one of the best safety records in all of the Marine Corps aircraft. Recently on July 10, a KC-130 crashed killing all 16 service members aboard the aircraft. An investigation is still underway with the crash.
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