Blackhawk from Ft Lewis Crashes

[RedDragonV09]

Enumclaw, Wash. - A third body was found early Friday after a Black Hawk helicopter from Fort Lewis crashed overnight Thursday on a mountain near Enumclaw during a scheduled training mission, killing all three aboard, the Army confirmed Friday.

"It was in the area where the other bodies were found as well," Lt. Col. Dan Williams, a spokesman from Fort Lewis told a news conference Friday morning.

The remains will be removed and will undergo an autopsy, he said.

While the identities of the three men will not be released until at least 24 hours after families have been notified, Williams confirmed all three were pilots with the Delta Troop 4-6 CAV. The unit is based out of Fort Lewis and includes pilots and maintenance personnel.

Williams also said all three are husbands and fathers and were scheduled to deploy to Iraq in the spring.

Investigators from Fort Rucker, Alabama, have been called to determine the cause of the crash.

"It will be a lengthy process, but we aren't going to put a time limit on safety," Williams said.

The UH-60 Black Hawk medium utility helicopter went down on Mount Peak, also known as Pinnacle Peak, just south of Enumclaw about 9 p.m. Thursday. Army officials said the three were on a night vision goggles trainining mission.

"When the aircraft didn't come back from its training mission, concerns were begun. Then they received calls that a possible aircraft was down, believed it might be military. We confirmed it was," said Williams.

The crash site was located after a deputy who is also a pilot for the county's helicopter found a piece of a helicopter rotor during the ground search.

King County sheriff's deputies and civilians found the wreckage and the bodies of two soldiers about 10 p.m. on the south side of the 1,835-foot mountain near the King County Fairgrounds, about 30 miles east of Fort Lewis, Deputy Rodney C. Chinnick said.


The three were on a night vision goggles trainining mission.
Officials are stressing the crash site is off-limits to everyone except those involved in the investigation, and are asking people to stay away from the area.


I just left this unit not more than 2 months ago. I am just in shock right now cuz I know everyone from Delta Troop. Really my heart is just hurting right now. I dont even know who was in the Blackhawk. So I dont even know which of my friends died. And their families, I cant imagine the pain they are feeling. I just feel so helpless, you know.

Alright, I will see you guys later.

[l3it3r]

Very sad to hear when things like this happen, and it's even worse when it's within the military family since it's so huge, and yet, at the same time, so small. My thoughts and prayers are with them and their families this holiday. Everyone in the military encounters this in some way I'm sure, I've had my share, and I know it's very disorienting.

[FROG]

my thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends :cry:

[mtnbkrpnk]

Yes, our thoughts and prayers are with them. :cry:

[Red Snake]

That sucks. :(


RIP

[sandspeed]

Rest in peace brothers. My thoughts are with the families.

[hyprspec]

Such a shame, I pray their families are taken care of.

[1080me]

I pray for there families as well. It's so sad to hear stuff like this.

[EVILEVO]

Have the names of the crew been released yet?

[RedDragonV09]

Ive been meaning to update this.


ENUMCLAW, Wash. — Charles Van Hoof Jr. was one of the first people to respond to a Black Hawk helicopter from Fort Lewis that crashed on a wooded hillside, killing the three crew members aboard.

Van Hoof said he arrived at the crash scene to find that the UH-60 Black Hawk had hit a large tree and crashed about 400 feet up the mountain behind his home.

“When they hit that tree, it was over,” Van Hoof said Friday night. “If they had went another 20 feet higher, it would have gone over everything.”

Fort Lewis identified the soldiers Saturday as [highlight:0a8a4]Sgt. Thomas L. Clarkston Jr., 25, Chief Warrant Officer Patrick J. Paige, 32, and Chief Warrant Officer James E. Whitehead, 33.[/highlight:0a8a4]

All were members of the 4th Squadron, 6th Air Cavalry Regiment, which has been at Fort Lewis for about a year.

Clarkston’s family Friday said they’d been notified that he was among those killed.

Clarkston, of Liberty, Ind., was the crew chief of the Black Hawk, overseeing navigation and other duties. He began service in May 2002 and was stationed at Fort Lewis in July 2005.

His survivors include his wife, Teffiny, and a 14-month old son.

Paige was an Army aviator from Alabama. He had been on active duty since November 1995, Fort Lewis officials said.

Whitehead was also an aviator and native of Hawaii. He began active duty in August 1992.

Both Paige and Whitehead arrived at Fort Lewis in August 2005, the Army said. Their hometowns were not immediately available.

The crew had been on a scheduled night training mission Thursday when the helicopter crashed on the 1,835-foot Mount Peak.

A team of safety investigators from the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center at Fort Rucker, Ala., was called in to try to find out what went wrong.

Van Hoof, 42, said he heard the helicopter fly low over the area.

“It was so low that it shook the house,” he said, noting that it was lower than normal military training flights through the area.

“It went over, and then about two seconds later, I heard it hitting the trees, thrashing and making a lot of noise,” Van Hoof said. “And then there was an explosion and a red flash.”

He called 911 and headed up the steep, snowy mountain with his wife. Armed with flashlights and blankets, they found bits of Fiberglas and a strong smell of diesel fuel.

The site looked like a bomb had gone off, Van Hoof said. The Black Hawk had sheared a path off the top of the pines before dropping to the ground.

Only the copter’s tailpiece was recognizable. The front of the aircraft was “totally gone, just pieces everywhere,” Van Hoof said.

The couple later led King County sheriff’s deputies to the crash site. Searchers found the first two bodies quickly, then discovered the third Friday morning.

The fatal Army helicopter crash was one of the first in Washington state since October 1983, when another Black Hawk burst into flames south of Mount Rainier National Park, killing all four aboard.

Fort Lewis is home to an estimated 130 Black Hawks, Chinooks, OH-58 Kiowa Warrior scout helicopter and AH-64 Apache attack helicopters.