3 Dead as Army Helicopters Collide

The US Army suffered "an incredible loss" Thursday when two Apache helicopters from Alaska's Fort Wainwright collided while returning from a training mission, killing three soldiers and injuring a fourth. There were two soldiers on each of the helicopters, which collided midair near Healy, about 100 road miles south of Fairbanks, per the Anchorage Daily News. Two soldiers were pronounced dead at the scene and the third died en route to a Fairbanks hospital. The names of the soldiers have not been released, though Army officials said they were from the 11th Airborne Division's 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment.

"This is an incredible loss for these soldiers’ families, their fellow soldiers, and for the division," said Maj. Gen. Brian Eifler, commanding general of the 11th Airborne Division. "Our hearts and prayers go out to their families, friends and loved ones, and we are making the full resources of the Army available to support them." The crash—the second involving military helicopters in Alaska this year, per the AP—is under investigation by a team from the Army Combat Readiness Center at Alabama's Fort Novosel, the Army said. It comes a month after two Blackhawk helicopters crashed during a routine training mission near Kentucky's Fort Campbell, killing nine. (More helicopter crash stories.)