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5 Missing After Army Helicopter Goes Down Off Hawaii

A UH-60 Blackhawk from the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division / Getty
August 16, 2017

Responders are continuing to search Wednesday for five missing crewmen after a U.S. Army helicopter went down off the coast of Hawaii the prior day.

The U.S. Coast Guard announced on Tuesday that it was beginning the search for the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, which went down two miles west of Kaena Point, Oahu, ABC News reports.

Personnel at Wheeler Army Airfield called the Coast Guard after they lost communications with the helicopter around 10 p.m. local time. Around 11:28 p.m., responders found a debris field around Kaena Point, according to the Coast Guard.

"We found some debris and we recovered some debris, we cannot determine where it's from," said Honolulu Fire Battalion Chief Paul Fukuda. "It's so spread out and with the darkness, it's hard to say how big the debris field was."

Two Black Hawk aircrews were conducting training between Kaena Point and Dillingham Airfield at the time communications were lost, the Coast Guard said.

Among those responding to the incident were three helicopters, a Coast Guard cutter and response boat, and the Honolulu Fire Department, CNN reported.

The missing Black Hawk, which had five crew members aboard, is the latest in a string of incidents involving America's military aviation. A Marine Corps V-22 Osprey crashed off the coast of Australia earlier this month. In July, a Marine Corps KC-130 Hercules transport aircraft crashed in Mississippi, leaving 16 dead.

Published under: Army