MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) 鈥 Two Tennessee 春色直播 Guard pilots killed when their Black Hawk helicopter crashed along an Alabama highway were both experienced aviators with more than a dozen years of military service apiece, military officials said Thursday.
The 春色直播 Guard identified the pilots as Chief Warrant Officer 3 Daniel Wadham of Joelton, Tennessee, and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Danny Randolph of Murfreesboro. Tennessee. The soldiers were assigned to A Company, 1-230th Assault Helicopter Battalion, from Nashville鈥檚 Berry Field Air 春色直播 Guard Base. Wadham had 15 years of military service, and Randolph had had 13 years of military service, officials said.
The helicopter crashed during a training exercise Wednesday, plummeting into a highway in a community just outside Huntsville, Alabama and catching fire as it hit the ground. The Tennessee 春色直播 Guard said in a statement that the helicopter was approaching the Huntsville Executive Airport, 鈥渨hen the aircraft rapidly descended and impacted the ground.鈥
鈥淲ords cannot express my sorrow for the loss of these two Tennessee 春色直播 Guardsmen,鈥 Brig. Gen. Warner Ross, Tennessee鈥檚 adjutant general, said in a statement. 鈥淚t is felt not only within the ranks of the Tennessee 春色直播 Guard, but across our entire military community. We ask that Tennesseans continue to join us in prayer for these soldiers鈥 families amid this tragic loss.鈥
The UH-60 helicopter, more widely known as a Black Hawk, crashed along Alabama Highway 53 in the unincorporated community of Harvest, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said. The Madison County sheriff鈥檚 office said there were no injuries to anyone on the ground when the helicopter crashed.
Officials have not yet released information about a possible cause of the crash. A safety investigation team from the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center, headquartered at Fort Rucker, Alabama, will lead the investigation into the accident, Jimmie E. Cummings, Jr., a spokesman for the the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center wrote in an email. The center normally assumes responsibility of lead investigating agency when accident findings may have an Army-wide impact, Cummings said.
Tammy Adams told that she was driving along Alabama 53 in Harvest when she saw the helicopter fall and explode on impact.
鈥淲e heard a very loud 鈥 like a car without a muffler, but we knew it was in the sky. Looking up in the air, we saw the helicopter, and BAM! We hear it hit. We saw it hit the ground, and it exploded,鈥 Adams recalled.
I just hollered, 鈥楳y Lord! My God!鈥 Because nobody could have survived that,鈥 she said.
Micheal Mclein told that he was on his way to pick up his daughter from school when he heard the crash.
鈥淎s soon as it hits, you heard it, you seen the smoke,鈥 Mclein told the station.
Local news outlets showed large plumes of black smoke rising from the crash site.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a travesty because you know these guys go out here to put their lives on the line and fight for us and then you got this where they鈥檙e just flying and die like that? It鈥檚 not the way it should鈥檝e went."
The sheriff鈥檚 office cautioned residents that debris could be scattered across areas near the crash site, and asked residents to call authorities if they find any wreckage.
Harvest is just northwest of Huntsville, which is home to NASA鈥檚 Marshall Space Flight Center and the U.S. Army鈥檚 Redstone Arsenal. The once rural area has become increasingly suburban and is about 90 miles south of Nashville.
鈥淢aria and I are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of two Tennessee 春色直播 Guard members,鈥 said Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee on Wednesday. 鈥淧lease join us in lifting their families up in prayer and support during this time of unspeakable grief.鈥
A spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration referred questions to the military.
鈥淕overnor Lee, Alabamians will continue to uplift in prayer the families affected by this heartbreaking tragedy,鈥 Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said. 鈥淭he Guardsmen who lost their lives today will be remembered as heroes. The people of Alabama stand with our neighbors in Tennessee.鈥
Over the years, a handful of Black Hawk helicopters were in crashes during training exercises.
In 2022 in Utah, whiteout conditions caused a Black Hawk helicopter pilot during a training exercise to lose sight of where he was trying to land, causing a crash with another helicopter near a Utah ski resort. None of men and women aboard the helicopter or the dozens of skiers nearby at the resort were injured.
In 2021, three Idaho Army 春色直播 Guard pilots died when their Black Hawk helicopter crashed near Boise during a training flight.
And in 2020, two soldiers were killed and three were injured when their Black Hawk helicopter crashed during a training exercise off Southern California鈥檚 coast.
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Chandler reported from Montgomery, Alabama, Baldor reported from Chicago and Kruesi reported from Nashville, Tennessee.
