Posted on 01/13/2009 10:23:40 PM PST by Paleo Conservative
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) ― One person was killed and four others injured when an Army Blackhawk helicopter on a field training exercise crashed Monday into a field on the campus of Texas A&M University.
The helicopter crashed at about 3:30 p.m. near the Corps of Cadets field on the school's College Station campus, about 100 miles northwest of Houston. A crew of four and an Army lieutenant assigned to the school's ROTC unit were the only ones aboard the BlaOne person was killed and four others injured when an Army Black Hawk helicopter on a field training exercise crashed Monday into a field on the campus of Texas A&M University.
The Army UH-60 helicopter crashed at about 3:30 p.m. near the Corps of Cadets field on the school's College Station campus, about 100 miles northwest of Houston. A crew of four from the Army National Guard and an Army lieutenant assigned to the school's ROTC unit were the only ones aboard the Black Hawk, Texas A&M spokesman Lane Stephenson said. No students were among the injured. Classes resume after winter break on Jan. 20.
Melissa Purl, spokeswoman for College Station Medical Center, said three men were taken to that hospital. All three were in critical condition. Another crash victim was at St. Joseph Regional Health Center in Bryan, a spokesman said, but didn't immediately know any details.
Officials did not release the names of the dead and injured.
Witnesses told the Bryan-College Station Eagle they saw five Black Hawk helicopters taking off and landing throughout the day.
Scott Walker told the newspaper that he saw two helicopters lift off around 3:05 p.m. The first one took off without trouble, but the second seemed to lose control and start spinning, Walker said.
"All of a sudden he dropped straight back down into the ground," Walker told the newspaper.
Bart Humphreys, a spokesman for the College Station Fire Department said the investigation into the crash was just beginning.
The helicopter, along with 190 cadets in the university's Corps of Cadets, the school's own officer training unit, were participating in the ROTC Winter Field Training Exercises. ckhawk, Texas A&M spokesman Lane Stephenson said. No students were among the injured.
Melissa Purl, spokeswoman for College Station Medical Center, said three men were taken to that hospital. All three were in critical condition. Another crash victim was at St. Joseph Regional Health Center in Bryan, a spokesman said.
Officials did not release the names of the dead and injured.
Witnesses told the Bryan-College Station Eagle they saw five Blackhawk helicopters taking off and landing throughout the day.
Scott Walker told the newspaper that he saw two helicopters lift off around 3:05 p.m. The first one took off without trouble, but the second seemed to lose control and start spinning, Walker said.
"All of a sudden he dropped straight back down into the ground," Walker told the newspaper.
Bart Humphreys, a spokesman for the College Station Fire Department said the investigation into the crash was just beginning.
The helicopter, along with 190 cadets in the university's Corps of Cadets, the school's own officer training unit, were participating in the ROTC Winter Field Training Exercises.
Students are currently on winter break, with classes set to resume on Jan. 20.
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Here are some more links.
http://www.kbtx.com/home/headlines/37460119.html
http://www.statesman.com/news/mediahub/media/slideshow/index.jsp?tId=140687
Tail rotor failure? Stuck pedal?
tragic accident
squash plate hung up?
Swashplate before the crash
Squash plate after the crash
That would be my first guess, given the description of the event.
yeah I always pronounce that wrong....thanks.
Loss of tail rotor thrust, Very hard to deal with at a low airspeed. I’m a UH-60 pilot and I can tell you this is one of the most feared emergencies. Any damage/problem with the tail rotor at low airspeed really REALLY sucks.
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