U.S. Army Apache helicopter crashes, burns in Texas; 2 pilots die
The U.S. Army has halted Apache training flights while it investigates the cause of the crash.
An AH-64E Apache attack helicopter owned by the U.S. Army crashed and burned near Salado, Bell County, Texas, on Wednesday afternoon, killing the two crew members aboard. Fort Hood identified the victims as Chief Warrant Officer 2 Deontre T. Huey, 34, and Warrant Officer Seth L. Olmstead, 25, of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division. Local authorities said the helicopter went down in a field and did not hit any buildings or people on the ground. The crash also sparked a wildfire covering about 40 hectares. Fort Hood said the aircraft was on a maintenance test flight. The U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center in Fort Rucker, Alabama, has taken over the investigation, and all Apache training flights have been suspended temporarily.