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Daytime chopper flights continue despite Chinook disaster
The latest Black Hawk shootdown occurred at 9 a.m., despite a Fox News item several days ago that daytime helicopter flights had been phased out. Someone at Centcom needs to be relieved of his command.U.S. Black Hawk Helicopter Crashes in Iraq, 6 Killed TIKRIT, Iraq (Reuters) - A U.S. Black Hawk helicopter crashed near Saddam Husseinâs hometown in Iraq on Friday, killing six people on board, and U.S. soldiers said it had been probably been shot down with a rocket-propelled grenade. Apache attack helicopters were scouring the area around the crash site in Tikrit, 175 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad, hunting for guerrillas who may have brought the Black Hawk down. If confirmed to have been attacked by guerrillas, it would be the third U.S. helicopter shot down in two weeks. "At approximately 9 a.m. (0600 GMT) this morning a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter went down," Major Josslyn Aberle of the 4th Infantry Division told reporters. "At this stage we donât know if it was due to mechanical failure or another reason." But soldiers in Tikrit said initial reports suggested the helicopter had been hit by a rocket-propelled grenade. A column of smoke rose from the crash site, and U.S. troops sealed off the area. Soldiers at the base said they heard two explosions and ran outside to see the destroyed helicopter. A military spokeswoman said the helicopter had burst into flames after crashing on the banks of the Tigris river. Posted by: Zhang Fei 2003-11-07 |
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