Flight Data Recorders Found, Being Investigated After Army Black Hawk Crash Kills 9

A pair of flight data recorders have been recovered from two U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopters that collided in Kentucky during a routine training mission, killing everyone aboard both aircrafts.

An aviation safety team from the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center on Tuesday confirmed it had successfully recovered both devices, often referred to as “black boxes” in civilian air crafts. They have since been shipped off to Fort Rucker in Alabama for further analysis, a news release from the 101st Airborne Division said.

The HH-60 Black Hawk helicopters slammed into each other on March 29 around 10 p.m. local time amid a training exercise in Trigg County, located just west of Army base Fort Campbell. Army officials have said the pilots were using night vision goggles at the time of the deadly crash.

There were four people flying in one helicopter and another five on the second aircraft. They were all killed in the collision.

Three of the soldiers who died in the crash were posthumously promoted, the division said. Corporal Emilie Marie Eve Bolanos was promoted to Sergeant, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Zachary Espinoza was promoted to Chief Warrant Officer 3, and Warrant Officer 1 Aaron Healy was promoted to Chief Warrant Officer 2.

The remaining victims were identified by the Army as Warrant Officer 1 Jeffery Barnes, 33, of Milton, Fla.; Sgt. Isaacjohn Gayo, 27, of Los Angeles, Calif.; Staff Sgt. Joshua Gore, 25, of Morehead City, N.C.; Staff Sgt. Taylor Mitchell, 30, of Mountain Brook, Ala.; Chief Warrant Officer 2 Rusten Smith, 32, of Rolla, Mo.; and Sgt. David Solinas Jr., 23, of Oradell, N.J.

The cause of the deadly crash remained under investigation on Wednesday. Officials declined to provide a timeline for when they expect the probe to be complete.

With News Wire Services

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