According to a general, two US Army helicopters that were on a nighttime training exercise in Kentucky crashed, killing all nine troops inside.
According to Brigadier General John Lubas, the Black Hawk helicopters used for medical evacuation were participating in a routine training operation the night before the accident.
It “resulted in the death of all nine service members aboard the aircraft,” all of them members of the 101st Airborne Division, which is based at Fort Campbell in Kentucky, he said.
According to Lubas, who noted that the military is still working to inform all the families of those killed, there were five soldiers on one helicopter and four on another.
Helicopters that were flying in order and whose pilots were wearing night vision goggles were able to land in an open field next to a residential area without causing any casualties or damage to the ground, according to him.
It was still unclear whether the two helicopters collided as an investigation team traveled to Fort Campbell from the location where US Army Aviation is based in Alabama.
“We have a safety team coming… from Fort Rucker, Alabama who specialize in aircraft safety and specifically these investigations,” Lubas said.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear mourned the lost soldiers and praised those who responded to the crash.
“We are blessed to live in the freest country in the history of planet Earth. But we must remember that that freedom relies on those who are willing to serve, some of which pay the ultimate price,” the governor told the news conference.
