WASHINGTON: The US Army’s chief of staff on Friday grounded all pilots who were not involved in critical missions until they complete the required training, after four US helicopters crashed in a matter of weeks.
Two AH-64 Apache helicopters collided in Alaska Thursday, killing three soldiers on spot and injuring a fourth, while two Black Hawks went down in Kentucky late in March, leaving nine dead. General James McConville “ordered an aviation stand down following two deadly helicopter mishaps that claimed the lives of 12 soldiers. The move grounds all Army aviators, except those participating in critical missions, until they complete the required training,” the Army in a statement said.
“During the stand down, the Army will review the risk approval/risk management process, aviation maintenance training program, aircrew training standardization and management, and supervisory responsibility,” the statement said.
Active-duty units must complete the 24-hour stand down between May 1 and 5, and National Guard and Reserve units by May 31, the statement added. There have been multiple crashes of United States military aircraft in recent years, including the one involving a Black Hawk helicopter that killed two Tennessee National Guardsmen during a training flight in Alabama in February.
Four United States Marines were killed during the NATO exercises in Norway in 2022 when their V-22B Osprey aircraft went down, possibly after hitting a mountain, said the investigators.
And two United States Navy pilots were rescued after their T-45C Goshawk jet went down during a training exercise in a residential neighbourhood near Fort Worth, Texas two years ago. The pilots ejected before the plane hit the ground.
