As Congress investigates the Osprey, families balance grief with pilots' love for the warplane

The V-22 Osprey that crashed off the coast of Japan last November has brought the aircraft's safety record back under scrutiny — but this time without one of its most vocal defenders.

Air Force Maj. Jeff Hoernemann had piloted the Osprey for more than a decade. Each time a new accident or incident occurred, you'd find him online, defending the warplane through his Reddit account, “UR_WRONG_ABOUT_V22.”

In November he and seven others were killed when their Air Force Special Operations Command CV-22B Osprey crashed off the coast of Japan.