UH60 Crash at Texas A&M

[Flying Pig]

http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2009/01/one-dead-in-bla.html

I hadnt heard about this.  It happened on Jan 13 at Texas A&M.  Two dead.  Any of our cadets go there?

[Timbo]

January 16, 2009

A memorial service will be held for 2nd Lt. Zachary Cook '08 at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 20 in Rudder Auditorium on the Texas A&M campus. Lt. Cook, 22, was a native of Lufkin and a December 2008 graduate of Texas A&M University who lost his life when a Texas National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter in which he was a passenger, crashed on Monday, Jan. 12, shortly after takeoff from Duncan Field. The helicopter, along with 190 cadets in the Army ROTC program, that is part of the university's Corps of Cadets, was participating in the program's Winter Field Training Exercises. Lt. Cook was a newly commissioned Army officer on temporary assignment with the ROTC cadre at Texas A&M University. The cadets will conduct a Corps Formation to march to the auditorium. Members of Lt. Cook's former Corps unit, Company D-1, along with the Parsons Mounted Calvary and the ROTC cadre, will participate in the ceremony. Texas A&M President Elsa A. Murano also will make brief remarks. Lt. Cook's family will be in attendance. Seating for the service begins at 4:30 p.m. and it is open to the public.

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It is a terrible loss for everyone.  I feel terrible for his family.  This is the first fatal accident for ROTC in a very long time.   

[DNall]

I've been heavily involved with this incident since it happened. There's not much I can release officially, which I know you understand.

I was the casualty assistance officer for SGT Mitts. Met the family at herman hospital an hour before he was flown in, and stayed about 14hrs before my relief got there & I was ordered home (over protest) to sleep (I slept a few hours on the conference room floor, I was good, I could have at least come in to work). I was supposed to come back in 24hrs, but he didn't make it that long. There were about 30 family and fiends there. The immediate family all got a chance to see him.

When I came in Thursday, I found out he was gone, was assigned OIC for arranging the military honors, and spent the day getting that set up. The crews have been practicing over the wknd (I was at a SaREx, but checked in on them just down the street).

I can't say much about the crash or speculate about the cause. All I know comes from the media reports, which say tail rotor failure on takeoff at approx 200, counter rotate in, impact nose low & slight bank from pedal against the torque. Any speculation as to cause would be a flat guess. Rucker will figure that out, but I expect it'll be pretty straight forward.

I know, but can't say the condition of the other crew members. We fully expect them to live, but they are in rough shape. I work regularly with one of the pilots (Matt Smith) and we're still worried about him over at BAMC.

The best resource for info (and pictures) I can refer you to is the local paper that was on scene during the accident. They are at: http://www.theeagle.com/

[Gunner C]

Extremely sad.  It's doubly tragic that the young lieutenant died before his career really got started.  The families of both soldiers must be devastated but they should be proud of their fallen warriors.

Well done Lt Mitts and Sgt Cook.

Gunner