Helicopter crash in Iraq,

[SheilaT]

One killed, on injured according to NPR at 8:30am CDT.

It broke up and went down in flames.

[huckleberry]

1. Here's link from Reuters

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=JEB4NAPSV1X5ACRBAEZSFFA?type=topNews&storyID=4065387

[NNN0LHI]

2. Here is a clickable link

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=294639

[frylock]

3. it broke up and went down in flames..

these things happen. I'm sure it wasn't shot down. Anyone know the stats for choppers combusting spontaneously?

[benburch]

4. It *does* happen...

Not sure about going down in flames, though!

Our military helicopters seem to have this disturbing tendency to lose their main rotors or their tail rotors in routine training exercises, and given the harsh maintenance environment in Iraq, one would expect to see this sort of problem crop up there as well.

I guess what I am saying is that we will have some soldiers killed as a result of failures not directly related to hostile fire, so we simply cannot assume anything...

-Ben

[Moderator]

5. Dupe... locking

Please continue discussion within the original LBN thread on this topic, which can be found here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=294639

There is also a second LBN thread on this topic that includes updated information about the cause (enemy fire) of the crash:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=294828&mesg_id=294828&page=

Thanks!

DU Moderator