In this photo released by the U.S. Army, AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopters from the 1st Attack Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment, fly over a mountain range near Fort Wainwright, Alaska, on June 3, 2019. The U.S. Army says two helicopters similar to these crashed on Thursday near Healy, Alaska, killing three soldiers and injuring a fourth.
SEATTLE — The U.S. Army identified on Saturday the three soldiers who were killed when two helicopters collided in Alaska while returning from a training mission.
The helicopters were headed to Fort Wainwright from a mission in the Donnelly Training Area when they crashed at 1:39 p.m. Thursday, about 50 miles east of Healy.
The U.S. Army announced Friday that it has grounded aviation units for training after 12 soldiers died within the last month in helicopter crashes in Alaska and Kentucky.
"The move grounds all Army aviators, except those participating in critical missions, until they complete the required training," the Army said in a statement.
Killed in Thursday's crash were Chief Warrant Officer 3 Christopher Robert Eramo, 39, of Oneonta, New York; Chief Warrant Officer 2 Kyle D. McKenna, 28, of Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Warrant Officer 1 Stewart Duane Wayment, 32, of North Logan, Utah.
A fourth soldier was injured and was taken to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital and was listed in stable condition. He was not identified Saturday.
"The battalion is devastated and mourning the loss of three of our best," said Lt. Col. Matthew C. Carlsen, the 1-25th AB commander. Their loss can't be compared to the suffering felt by the soldiers' families, he said.
https://www.npr.org/2023/04/28/1172725134/alaska-army-helicopters-crash-deaths
