Military confirms 3 soldiers dead In Aug. 15 crash in Hawaii

Military officials have declared three soldiers dead after their Black Hawk helicopter crashed off Hawaii during a nighttime training mission earlier this month.
The Armed Forces Medical Examiner says 1st Lt. Kathryn Bailey of North Carolina, Staff Sgt. Abigail Milam of Kentucky and Sgt. Michael Nelson of Tennessee are dead after confirming their DNA among debris recovered from the Aug. 15 crash. The three were riding in the helicopter with two others when it crashed off of Oahu.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Stephen Cantrell of Texas and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Brian Woeber of Alabama have not been found.
Search-and-rescue operations were suspended Aug. 21.
The U.S. Navy, the U.S. Coast Guard and the 25th Infantry Division are working on recovery and salvage operations.
The crash is still under investigation. AP
 

Report: ‘Human factors’ led to fatal Air Force plane crash

A plane crash in which three airmen were killed earlier this year was caused by “human factors,” Air Force officials said.
Capt. Kenneth Dalga, First Lt. Frederick Dellecker and Capt. Andrew Becker from the Cannon Air Force Base, N.M., died instantly when their propeller-driven plane crashed on March 14 while they were practicing approaches and landings near the Clovis Municipal Airport, the Eastern New Mexico News reported.
Over control or under control of the aircraft led to the crew “losing control of the aircraft when it stalled at low altitude” causing the crash, according to a report released last month by the U.S. Air Force Aircraft Accident Investigation Board signed by Brig. Brad Sullivan, president of the U.S Air Force Aircraft Accident Investigation Board.
“We don’t know if they overcontrolled or undercontrolled, which is why it says that,” said Capt. Emma Rush with Cannon’s public affairs office.
The report does not indicate which airman was controlling the plane, but does note that the aircraft, valued at $18.3 million, did not have any mechanical malfunctions.
Cannon Air Force Base has not made changes to its routine procedures after the accident or the report was released, according to Rush.
“It was a routine training procedure that has been accomplished the same way for a while,” she said. AP