Editor’s note: This story was updated at 6:20 a.m. EDT on April 28 with new information about the crash.
Three soldiers died and another was injured when a pair of AH-64 Apache helicopters based at Fort Wainwright crashed Thursday near Healy, Alaska, according to the 11th Airborne Division.
The two helicopters from the 1st Attack Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment collided while returning from a training flight.
Two troops died on scene, a division press release said, and a third died on the way to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital. The injured soldier is being treated there, though their condition is unclear.
“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 is the second serious Apache crash in Alaska this year. In February, two soldiers were injured when a military helicopter was involved in a rollover accident in Talkeetna. The crash occurred when the helicopter was taking off. Those soldiers were treated and released from the hospital.
The division said it will publicly identify the soldiers 24 hours after their families were notified.
It is the second fatal helicopter collision in two months involving Army aircraft. Nine soldiers were killed when two Black Hawks crashed near Fort Campbell, Kentucky, in March. According to a preliminary report released earlier this month, the two helicopters collided mid-air before going down. Investigators are still continuing their inquiry into that crash.
Impacted soldiers can find assistance at Fort Wainwright’s Emergence Assistance Center and from Army Community Service, the release added.
Investigators from the Army Combat Readiness Center, the service‘s safety authority at Fort Novosel, Alabama, will probe the crash.
Davis Winkie covers the Army for Military Times. He studied history at Vanderbilt and UNC-Chapel Hill, and served five years in the Army Guard. His investigations earned the Society of Professional Journalists' 2023 Sunshine Award and consecutive Military Reporters and Editors honors, among others. Davis was also a 2022 Livingston Awards finalist.
