U.S. Helicopter Crashes in Iraqi City of Mosul

Reuters ^ | 11-15-03

[Brian S]

U.S. Helicopter Crashes in Iraqi City of Mosul

Nov. 15 — MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - A U.S. helicopter crashed in a civilian area in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on Saturday and American soldiers sealed off the area, witnesses said.

A U.S. military spokesman said initial reports indicated that a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter had come down in northern Iraq and that a rapid reaction force was securing the area and investigating. There was no immediate word on casualties.

[Brian S]

Developing...

[MEG33]

Prayers.

[netmilsmom]

Not on Fox yet! Go FReepers!

[LibertySailor]

This was on CNN 5 minutes ago.

This site is fast.

I love this forum

[LibertySailor]

Your tag line is sad.

I am glad my house is paid for and not mortgaged

Mortgages are hellish

[Brian S]

MORE...

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U.S. helicopter crashes in Mosul
Sat 15 November, 2003 17:26



By Seb Walker

MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - A U.S. helicopter has crashed in a civilian area in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul and American soldiers have sealed off the area, witnesses say.

Some local witnesses said two helicopters may have collided and crashed but the U.S. military said on Saturday it could not confirm this.

A U.S. military spokesman said initial reports indicated that a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter had come down in northern Iraq and that a rapid reaction force was securing the area and investigating. He gave no further details.

One witness reported seeing two helicopters in trouble. "I was watching TV when I heard a large explosion," said local man Mohammad Badran. "I looked outside the window and saw two helicopters.

"One was flying low and was on fire. The other was higher up. The first one climbed and hit the higher one. They crashed in separate areas."

The Black Hawk is the U.S. Army's frontline utility helicopter, designed to carry 11 combat-ready assault troops, and is also used for medical evacuations.

Three U.S. helicopters have been shot down in Iraq in the past three weeks for an overall loss of 22 lives.

In the deadliest single strike on American troops since the start of the war to oust Saddam Hussein, a U.S. Chinook helicopter was shot down west of Baghdad on November 2, killing 16 soldiers.

Five days later a U.S. Black Hawk was shot down near Saddam's hometown of Tikrit, killing all six people aboard.

On October 25, guerrillas brought down a Black Hawk in Tikrit, hitting one of its engines with an RPG. The helicopter made an emergency landing and all five crew members escaped before it was engulfed in flames.

Insurgents now mounting some 30 attacks a day have killed 160 U.S. soldiers in Iraq since U.S. President George W. Bush declared major combat over on May 1. U.S. forces in Baghdad have hit back with "Operation Iron Hammer" for the past three days, using air strikes to destroy buildings they say were used by insurgents.

[Travis McGee]

Not good.... Doesn't sound like a survivable auto-rotation crash landing.

God Bless our troops!!!

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

FoxNews, not much to add.

Blackhawk Down in Northern Iraq

Saturday, November 15, 2003

A U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter went down in Northern Iraq on Saturday, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad confirmed to Fox News.

The AUH-60 chopper was part of the 101st Airborne Division. U.S. forces were securing area. There is no indication yet as to whether enemy action was involved. It's not yet known how many people were on aboard nor how many casualties there are.

~~~~~~

Prayers going out.

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Thanks, Brian.

[ken in texas]

Thanks for the update. May God be with those who serve this country.

[LibertySailor]

I am praying for the chopper inhabitants to be safe and sound

[montag813]

GROUND ALL "BLACKHAWK" HELICOPTERS NOW!!!

THIS AIRCRAFT IS A DEATHTRAP FOR U.S. SERVICEMEN. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! CALL YOUR CONGRESSMAN NOW!

[thinktwice]

Just who's side are you on?

Our military is fighting a war, and ... you want to quit?

[LibertySailor]

CNN just reported that it was 2 choppers that went down in Mosul.

Did you hear that as well?

[LibertySailor]

Is the Blackhawk unreliable?

The Huey was one solid true-blue chopper

[Brian S]

AP reporting this...


(Mosul, Iraq-AP, Nov. 15, 2003 12:45 PM) _ A man says he was leaving a mosque in Mosul, Iraq, when he heard a boom and saw two U-S helicopters collide in mid-air.

The man says one crashed onto the roof of a house but he doesn't know what happened to the other one.

The military says a helicopter crashed in Mosul but no word on casualties or the cause.

Mosul is Iraq's third-largest city. Witnesses say the crash occurred in a residential neighborhood.

[Alamo-Girl]

Bump!

[Brian S]

Sky News...

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US HELICOPTERS COLLIDE

Two US helicopters have crashed in a residential neighborhood in the center of the northern Iraqi city of Mosul.

One of the helicopters was in flames on a road in the Borsa civilian area where fire engines and ambulances had converged.


US troops immediately moved in to cordon off the area.

There was no word on the cause of the crash or possible casualties.

A witness said that two helicopters collided in mid-air before one crashed onto the roof of a house.

He added that he did not know what happened to the other aircraft.

[montag813]

Just who's side are you on? Our military is fighting a war, and ... you want to quit?

So I am a traitor if I criticize a Sikorsky aircraft? The Blackhawk has the highest fatality/crash ratio of any combat helicopter ever produced. El Al passenger aircraft have better anti-rocket defenses than the Blackhawk. You coul probably shoot the damn thing down with a slingshot. It has as much business operating in a combat zone as Jessica Lynch did. It is time to ground it, or keep it out of harm's way.