| From TW's story yesterday, brought forward. |
Initial reports suggested the helicopter was hit with a rocket-propelled grenade, said the U.S. official, who insisted on speaking anonymously because the crash was still under investigation. NATO said there were no survivors. Along with the five Americans, two soldiers from Britain and Canada who had been passengers were also killed, military officials said.
NATO said the CH-47 Chinook was carrying a crew of five and two military passengers when it crashed. The cause was ``being determined by military officials,'' it said.
NATO said troops going to the crash site were ambushed by enemy fighters and the unit called in an airstrike ``to eliminate the enemy threat.'' It did not say if the troops were from the U.S.-led coalition, NATO's force or the Afghan army. One civilian was injured by gunfire.