Black Hawk Down: Recent crashes involving the iconic chopper
An American Airlines regional passenger jet and a US Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed into the frigid Potomac River after a mid-air collision near Reagan Washington National Airport on Wednesday night, officials said.
The incident left at least 18 dead.
While the Black Hawk is one of the most iconic and advanced helicopters of all time, it is not immune to air crash disasters.
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Between 1981 and 1984, Black Hawk helicopters were involved in 16 crashes, resulting in 22 fatalities. In 1985, after a series of six crashes within four months that claimed 15 lives, the US Army temporarily grounded the aircraft. The deadliest incident during this period occurred on March 13, 1985, at Fort Bragg, where a crash killed eight soldiers and four crew members.
Between December of 2019 and March of 2023, at least 10 Black Hawk crashes on US soil have resulted in military fatalities.
As of March 2023, Aviation Safety Network lists 390 total incidents involving Black Hawk helicopters (including variants). ASN data lists 970 deaths in Black Hawk helicopter crashes.
Here we take a look at some of the recent crashes involving the Black Hawk:
March 2023: Two HH-60 Black Hawk helicopters from the 101st Airborne Division crashed in southwestern Kentucky during a training exercise, resulting in the deaths of nine US service members. This was the deadliest helicopter training accident since a 2015 Black Hawk crash in Florida, which claimed 11 lives.
February 2023: A Tennessee National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk went down during a training flight in Alabama, killing Chief Warrant Officer 3 Daniel Wadham (39) and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Danny Randolph (40).
February 2021: A UH-60 Black Hawk crashed near Boise, Idaho, resulting in the deaths of three Idaho Army National Guard soldiers.
January 2021: A New York Army National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk crashed during a routine training mission, killing three soldiers. A preliminary investigation mentioned 911 calls reporting "sputtering sounds" from the engine before the aircraft went down.
November 2020: A UH-60 Black Hawk on a peacekeeping mission in Egypt crashed due to a technical failure, killing five US Army soldiers, along with one French and one Czech service member.
August 2020: A training exercise off the coast of California ended in disaster when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed, killing two Army soldiers and injuring three others.
December 2019: A UH-60 Black Hawk from the Minnesota Army National Guard crashed shortly after taking off for a routine maintenance test flight. All three crew members on board lost their lives.
