Black Hawk ‘shot down’
The US Black Hawk helicopter that crashed this morning killing all six US military personnel on board was probably shot down by a rocket-propelled grenade.
If reports from the soldiers at an US army base near Saddam’s hometown of Tikrit, where the crash occurred, are confirmed, the Black Hawk will be the second US helicopter to be brought down by rebel fighters in five days.
The helicopter was flying near Tikrit when it was allegedly attacked. The town has been the scene of fierce resistance to the US troops.
Reports that the helicopter was shot down have not been confirmed by the US military.
Major Josslyn Aberle of the 4th Infantry Division told the Associated Press this morning: “At approximately 9 am this morning a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter went down. At this stage we don’t know if it was due to mechanical failure or another reason.”
However, soldiers claimed to have heard two explosions before spotting a plume of smoke coming up from the wreckage of the helicopter.
The Black Hawk was from the 101st Airborne Division. It is the third helicopter to have been shot down since the war ended.
The Black Hawk helicopter is used by the US military to transport troops to the frontline and remove casualties from the battlefield. It can carry up to eleven soldiers and has crew of three.
Sixteen US troops died on Sunday after a Chinook was shot down near Baghdad.
In separate incidents, two US soldiers were killed in ambushes in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul.
The news follows the announcement by US Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, yesterday, that America would be sending 128,000 troops to Iraq in early 2004 to replace forces rotating back to their home bases after a year long tour of duty.
