Blackhawk down
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Blackhawk down
FORT DRUM, N.Y. - A Black Hawk helicopter carrying 13 people crashed Tuesday in a heavily wooded area of this sprawling Army post in upstate New York, military officials said. The Army said there were two survivors but did not immediately disclose the number of dead.
Maj. Gen. Franklin Hagenbeck, commander of the 10th Mountain Division, refused to take questions at a news briefing but indicated there were fatalities.
"I would like to extend my condolences to the families of our fallen comrades and I want to assure you that we will fully investigate this terrible accident and do everything in our power to take care of all the families involved in this tragedy," he said.
The helicopter, a widely used transport aircraft, crashed just north of Wheeler-Sack Airfield, Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty said. He said there was no indication of problems beforehand.
"The first call I got was that it was missing. It just disappeared," Hilferty said. He said he believed the aircraft was on a training mission with at least one other helicopter, perhaps two.
Maj. Daniel Bohr at Fort Drum said the aircraft last made radio contact shortly before 2 p.m. Rescue crew located the crash site at about 3:30 p.m.
Greg Burnelle, a Jefferson County emergency management official, said the helicopter crashed between the tiny towns of Antwerp and Philadelphia. Burnelle said there were "critical injured people."
Hilferty said at least one soldier was spotted walking away from the wreckage. Two soldiers were being taken to Samaritan Hospital and a third was en route to the hospital, spokeswoman Krista Kittle said.
Fort Drum, situated along the eastern shore of Lake Ontario about 70 miles northeast of Syracuse, is home to the 10th Mountain Division and has been a major staging area for reserve units taking part in the build-up toward war with Iraq. Nearly 1,000 division soldiers and reservists have left from Fort Drum in recent weeks.
Black Hawk UH-60 helicopters are widely used transport aircraft. They are equipped with advanced avionics and electronics, such as the global positioning systems.
The training mission had no connection with ongoing war exercises at the base, Hilferty said.
© 2003 The Associated Press
Maj. Gen. Franklin Hagenbeck, commander of the 10th Mountain Division, refused to take questions at a news briefing but indicated there were fatalities.
"I would like to extend my condolences to the families of our fallen comrades and I want to assure you that we will fully investigate this terrible accident and do everything in our power to take care of all the families involved in this tragedy," he said.
The helicopter, a widely used transport aircraft, crashed just north of Wheeler-Sack Airfield, Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty said. He said there was no indication of problems beforehand.
"The first call I got was that it was missing. It just disappeared," Hilferty said. He said he believed the aircraft was on a training mission with at least one other helicopter, perhaps two.
Maj. Daniel Bohr at Fort Drum said the aircraft last made radio contact shortly before 2 p.m. Rescue crew located the crash site at about 3:30 p.m.
Greg Burnelle, a Jefferson County emergency management official, said the helicopter crashed between the tiny towns of Antwerp and Philadelphia. Burnelle said there were "critical injured people."
Hilferty said at least one soldier was spotted walking away from the wreckage. Two soldiers were being taken to Samaritan Hospital and a third was en route to the hospital, spokeswoman Krista Kittle said.
Fort Drum, situated along the eastern shore of Lake Ontario about 70 miles northeast of Syracuse, is home to the 10th Mountain Division and has been a major staging area for reserve units taking part in the build-up toward war with Iraq. Nearly 1,000 division soldiers and reservists have left from Fort Drum in recent weeks.
Black Hawk UH-60 helicopters are widely used transport aircraft. They are equipped with advanced avionics and electronics, such as the global positioning systems.
The training mission had no connection with ongoing war exercises at the base, Hilferty said.
© 2003 The Associated Press
Last edited by James Roc; 12th Mar 2003 at 00:54.
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I hope for a fast and full recovery for the wounded. And my thoughts are with the grieving families.
I have seen alot of conflicting reports on this story. Some say only a few injured others say fatalities, still others say there were anywhere from 9-15 people on board. Time will tell.
Thanks for posting a link to the AP report. I think we can justify posting the full story in the circumstances.
Heliport
I have seen alot of conflicting reports on this story. Some say only a few injured others say fatalities, still others say there were anywhere from 9-15 people on board. Time will tell.
Thanks for posting a link to the AP report. I think we can justify posting the full story in the circumstances.
Heliport
Last edited by Heliport; 12th Mar 2003 at 09:41.
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Update
Associated Press report March 12 2003
Associated Press report March 12 2003
Black Hawk down
Fort Drum, New York: A US army Black Hawk helicopter with as many as 15 people believed to be aboard crashed today in upstate New York, military officials said.
Local officials said a number of people were critically injured.
Major Daniel Bohr at Fort Drum in New York state said he did not know how many people were aboard or where the craft went down.
"It's in New York state somewhere, on or near the vicinity of Fort Drum," Bohr said.
Greg Burnelle, a Jefferson County emergency management official, said the helicopter crashed on the army post between the tiny towns of Antwerp and Philadelphia.
Burnelle said there were "critical injured people".
Army officials at the sprawling post and the Pentagon said rescue teams were en route to the crash site.
Samaritan Hospital in Watertown was putting a mass casualty plan in place in anticipation of victims, spokeswoman Krista Kittle said.
Fort Drum, situated along the eastern shore of Lake Ontario about 113km north-east of Syracuse, is home to the 10th Mountain Division and has been a major staging area for reserve units taking part in the build-up toward war with Iraq. Nearly 1,000 division soldiers and reservists have left from Fort Drum in recent weeks.
Black Hawk UH-60 helicopters are widely used transport aircraft. They are equipped with advanced avionics and electronics, such as global positioning systems.
MSNBC, citing Pentagon sources, said the helicopter was carrying nine people when it lost radio contact about 2pm (0600 AEDT).
The helicopter can carry as many as 15 people.
Two injured people were taken to Samaritan Medical Centre in nearby Watertown, New York, a hospital spokeswoman said.
Their conditions were not disclosed. There were an unknown number of dead.
The crash occurred in a training area on Fort Drum property, said authorities, who sent several search and rescue teams out shortly after the aircraft went missing.
Officials said at a briefing at Fort Drum, located near Watertown, New York, and home to the army's 10th Mountain Division, that the crash occurred in a remote area blanketed with snow.
Fort Drum, New York: A US army Black Hawk helicopter with as many as 15 people believed to be aboard crashed today in upstate New York, military officials said.
Local officials said a number of people were critically injured.
Major Daniel Bohr at Fort Drum in New York state said he did not know how many people were aboard or where the craft went down.
"It's in New York state somewhere, on or near the vicinity of Fort Drum," Bohr said.
Greg Burnelle, a Jefferson County emergency management official, said the helicopter crashed on the army post between the tiny towns of Antwerp and Philadelphia.
Burnelle said there were "critical injured people".
Army officials at the sprawling post and the Pentagon said rescue teams were en route to the crash site.
Samaritan Hospital in Watertown was putting a mass casualty plan in place in anticipation of victims, spokeswoman Krista Kittle said.
Fort Drum, situated along the eastern shore of Lake Ontario about 113km north-east of Syracuse, is home to the 10th Mountain Division and has been a major staging area for reserve units taking part in the build-up toward war with Iraq. Nearly 1,000 division soldiers and reservists have left from Fort Drum in recent weeks.
Black Hawk UH-60 helicopters are widely used transport aircraft. They are equipped with advanced avionics and electronics, such as global positioning systems.
MSNBC, citing Pentagon sources, said the helicopter was carrying nine people when it lost radio contact about 2pm (0600 AEDT).
The helicopter can carry as many as 15 people.
Two injured people were taken to Samaritan Medical Centre in nearby Watertown, New York, a hospital spokeswoman said.
Their conditions were not disclosed. There were an unknown number of dead.
The crash occurred in a training area on Fort Drum property, said authorities, who sent several search and rescue teams out shortly after the aircraft went missing.
Officials said at a briefing at Fort Drum, located near Watertown, New York, and home to the army's 10th Mountain Division, that the crash occurred in a remote area blanketed with snow.
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New York Times report
11 Soldiers Feared Dead in Crash of Army Helicopter at Fort Drum
n Army helicopter carrying 13 soldiers on a training mission crashed in a wooded stretch of the sprawling Fort Drum in upstate New York yesterday. Only two soldiers survived the accident, the Army said.
The Black Hawk helicopter went down on the western edge of Fort Drum, which covers 167 square miles near Lake Ontario and is 75 miles north of Syracuse. Maj. Daniel Bohr, an Army spokesman at Fort Drum, said one survivor walked away from the wreckage.
He said those aboard the helicopter — a twin-engine aircraft that can carry up to 14 passengers — were regular soldiers on active duty, not reservists. Four were from an aviation brigade that provides flight crews for missions originating at Fort Drum. The others were from an infantry brigade.
Maj. Gen. F. L. Hagenbeck, commander of Fort Drum and of the 10th Mountain Division based there, appeared at a news briefing and expressed condolences "to the families of our fallen comrades." He also said there would be an investigation of "this terrible accident."
But he did not say that the other 11 had been killed, and other officials at Fort Drum said they would not do so until relatives of all of the victims had been reached.
Major Bohr said that the helicopter was on a training mission when it disappeared about 2 p.m. He said it had taken off from Wheeler-Sack Airfield on the base. It was not clear when the copter had taken off or whether it was trying to return to Wheeler-Sack when it slammed into the woods.
Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty, a spokesman for the 10th Mountain Division, said the training mission had involved three helicopters. The one that crashed was flying last in formation. But he said there was no indication that the three aircraft had been flying too close together or that one had bumped the helicopter that went down.
Major Bohr said the Army sent several other helicopters to search for the missing copter. It was found after about 90 minutes in a desolate area of scrub pine that is home to black bears and turkeys and was popular with hunters, until the Army closed it several months ago.
"We had a hard time getting to it," he said. Other officials said the wreckage was about three miles from Wheeler-Sack, near the hamlet of Philadelphia, N.Y.
Major Bohr said the two survivors had been taken to Samaritan Medical Center in Watertown, N.Y., about nine miles from Fort Drum. The hospital refused to release information on the condition of the two survivors.
Colonel Hilferty said there had been no indication of trouble. "The first call I got was that it was missing," he said. "It just disappeared."
He said the helicopter, a UH-60 Black Hawk, was on a training mission that had no connection with continuing war exercises at the base. Shortly before 2 p.m., the National Weather Service reported winds of 22 miles an hour at the Wheeler-Sack field, with gusts of up to 30 miles an hour. The skies were mostly cloudy, and the temperature was 23 degrees.
The UH-60 is the Army's principal tactical transport helicopter. The Defense Department says that the UH-60 has been a stalwart performer on air cavalry and electronic warfare missions and evacuations for more than 20 years. But Colonel Hilferty said he did not know the age of the UH-60 in the crash. UH-60's are typically equipped with advanced avionics and electronics.
Fort Drum has been a major staging area for reserve units as the Army has geared up for a possible war with Iraq. Nearly 1,000 soldiers and reservists have left in recent weeks.
n Army helicopter carrying 13 soldiers on a training mission crashed in a wooded stretch of the sprawling Fort Drum in upstate New York yesterday. Only two soldiers survived the accident, the Army said.
The Black Hawk helicopter went down on the western edge of Fort Drum, which covers 167 square miles near Lake Ontario and is 75 miles north of Syracuse. Maj. Daniel Bohr, an Army spokesman at Fort Drum, said one survivor walked away from the wreckage.
He said those aboard the helicopter — a twin-engine aircraft that can carry up to 14 passengers — were regular soldiers on active duty, not reservists. Four were from an aviation brigade that provides flight crews for missions originating at Fort Drum. The others were from an infantry brigade.
Maj. Gen. F. L. Hagenbeck, commander of Fort Drum and of the 10th Mountain Division based there, appeared at a news briefing and expressed condolences "to the families of our fallen comrades." He also said there would be an investigation of "this terrible accident."
But he did not say that the other 11 had been killed, and other officials at Fort Drum said they would not do so until relatives of all of the victims had been reached.
Major Bohr said that the helicopter was on a training mission when it disappeared about 2 p.m. He said it had taken off from Wheeler-Sack Airfield on the base. It was not clear when the copter had taken off or whether it was trying to return to Wheeler-Sack when it slammed into the woods.
Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty, a spokesman for the 10th Mountain Division, said the training mission had involved three helicopters. The one that crashed was flying last in formation. But he said there was no indication that the three aircraft had been flying too close together or that one had bumped the helicopter that went down.
Major Bohr said the Army sent several other helicopters to search for the missing copter. It was found after about 90 minutes in a desolate area of scrub pine that is home to black bears and turkeys and was popular with hunters, until the Army closed it several months ago.
"We had a hard time getting to it," he said. Other officials said the wreckage was about three miles from Wheeler-Sack, near the hamlet of Philadelphia, N.Y.
Major Bohr said the two survivors had been taken to Samaritan Medical Center in Watertown, N.Y., about nine miles from Fort Drum. The hospital refused to release information on the condition of the two survivors.
Colonel Hilferty said there had been no indication of trouble. "The first call I got was that it was missing," he said. "It just disappeared."
He said the helicopter, a UH-60 Black Hawk, was on a training mission that had no connection with continuing war exercises at the base. Shortly before 2 p.m., the National Weather Service reported winds of 22 miles an hour at the Wheeler-Sack field, with gusts of up to 30 miles an hour. The skies were mostly cloudy, and the temperature was 23 degrees.
The UH-60 is the Army's principal tactical transport helicopter. The Defense Department says that the UH-60 has been a stalwart performer on air cavalry and electronic warfare missions and evacuations for more than 20 years. But Colonel Hilferty said he did not know the age of the UH-60 in the crash. UH-60's are typically equipped with advanced avionics and electronics.
Fort Drum has been a major staging area for reserve units as the Army has geared up for a possible war with Iraq. Nearly 1,000 soldiers and reservists have left in recent weeks.
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The New York Times says 11 soldiers from 10th Mountain Division lost their lives in the crash, and two were seriously injured.
The two injured soldiers have undergone surgery and are
Spec. Dmitri Petrov, (22) in a critical condition
Spec. Edwin A. Mejia, serious condition with broken bones.
Those who died were
Capt. Christopher E. Britton, 27, of Ohio
Chief Warrant Officer 3rd Kenneth L. Miller, 35, of California
Staff Sgt. Brian Pavlich, 25, of Port Jervis, N.Y.
Sgt. John L. Eichenlaub Jr., 24, of South Williamsport, Pa.
Sgt. Joshua M. Harapko, 23, of Peoria, Ariz.
Spec. Lucas V. Tripp, 23, of Aurora, Colo.
Spec. Barry M. Stephens, 20, of Pinson, Ala.
Pfc. Shawn A. Mayerscik, 22, of Oil City, Pa.
Pfc. Tommy C. Young, 20, of Knoxville, Tenn.
Pfc. Stryder O. Stoutenburg, 18, of Missoula, Mont.
Pfc. Andrew D. Stevens, 20, of Rockingham, N.H.
Rest in Peace guys.
The two injured soldiers have undergone surgery and are
Spec. Dmitri Petrov, (22) in a critical condition
Spec. Edwin A. Mejia, serious condition with broken bones.
Those who died were
Capt. Christopher E. Britton, 27, of Ohio
Chief Warrant Officer 3rd Kenneth L. Miller, 35, of California
Staff Sgt. Brian Pavlich, 25, of Port Jervis, N.Y.
Sgt. John L. Eichenlaub Jr., 24, of South Williamsport, Pa.
Sgt. Joshua M. Harapko, 23, of Peoria, Ariz.
Spec. Lucas V. Tripp, 23, of Aurora, Colo.
Spec. Barry M. Stephens, 20, of Pinson, Ala.
Pfc. Shawn A. Mayerscik, 22, of Oil City, Pa.
Pfc. Tommy C. Young, 20, of Knoxville, Tenn.
Pfc. Stryder O. Stoutenburg, 18, of Missoula, Mont.
Pfc. Andrew D. Stevens, 20, of Rockingham, N.H.
Rest in Peace guys.
