Marine Corps Lt. Col. Shaina Hennessey. (U.S. Marine Corps)
The Marine Corps has relieved the command team of an MV-22 Osprey squadron based in Hawaii, citing a loss of trust and confidence in their ability to meet aviation standards, a service spokesman said.
Lt. Col. Shaina Hennessey was relieved of command Tuesday of Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 268 at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, said 2nd Lt. B.K. Rhodes, a spokesman for the Okinawa-based 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.
Hennessey was removed by wing commander Maj. Gen. Marcus Annibale due to a “loss of trust and confidence in her ability to uphold the safety and readiness standards expected in Marine Corps aviation,” Rhodes said in an email Thursday.
The squadron’s senior enlisted adviser, Sgt. Maj. Jamie Lampley, and its executive officer were also relieved that day, Rhodes said.
He declined by phone Thursday to name the executive officer “out of respect for the position.” Rhodes declined to say why the other two leaders were fired.
“We take accountability seriously in the Marine Corps, and we want to make sure that we maintain the trust of the American people and the integrity of our mission,” he said.
Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Jamie Lampley. (U.S. Marine Corps)
The 268th is one of two Osprey squadrons at Kaneohe Bay under Marine Aircraft Group 24, which transports troops, supplies and equipment, according to the group’s website.
Hennessey took command of the squadron on Dec. 6. An Osprey and CH-46E Sea Knight pilot, she previously served as an operational planner for the I Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Pendleton, Calif., from July 2021 to June 2024, according to her LinkedIn profile.
A California native, Hennessey joined the Marine Corps in 2007, according to her service biography provided by Rhodes on Friday. She previously flew with the wing on Okinawa.
Lampley, a native of Tennessee, enlisted in 2000 and previously served with the wing at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, according to his biography.
The squadron in September took part in a joint exercise with Army Chinook and Apache squadrons that involved more than 200 deck landings on the amphibious assault ship USS America off the Hawaii coast, according to a U.S. Pacific Fleet news release.
Lt. Col. John Campbell has taken command of the squadron, Rhodes said. Campbell most recently led the personnel support detachment for Marine Aircraft Group 24 at Kaneohe, according to his service biography.
Sgt. Maj. Joshua Henderson has been assigned as the squadron’s new senior enlisted leader. He previously served in the same role for Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 24, also based at Kaneohe, according to his biography.
The Osprey, which takes off and lands like a helicopter but flies like an airplane, has faced renewed scrutiny in recent years.
The U.S. and Japanese militaries grounded their Osprey fleets for nearly three months after an Air Force CV-22B crashed off Yakushima Island in November 2023, killing eight airmen.
Investigators attributed the crash to a catastrophic mechanical failure and what they described as a “lack of urgency” by the crew in responding to an engine problem.
