Five crew missing after US Army helicopter crashes off Hawaii

Five crew missing after US Army helicopter crashes off Hawaii

Five people are missing after a US Army helicopter crashed into the sea close to Hawaii.

Officials lost contact with the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter at around 10pm, during a night-time training exercise off the coast of Oahu island.

The search began immediately, and rescuers later spotted debris in the ocean two miles from the island's westernmost Kaena Point.

A plane, two helicopters and several boats are now being used in the search. No unusual weather conditions were reported.

Night-time training of this kind is commonplace for helicopter crews, according to Lieutenant Colonel Curtis Kellogg, public affairs officer for the Army's 25th Infantry Division.

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The loss of the helicopter was reported from the Wheeler Army Airfield near Honolulu, Hawaii's largest city, also on Oahu.

Another helicopter, also a part of the Army's 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, was also taking part in the exercise.

The UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-bladed twin engine utility helicopter, manufactured for the Army since the 1970s, by Silorsky Aircraft.</s>Emergency personnel on Wednesday were responding to reports of a downed Army Black Hawk helicopter with five crew aboard off the west coast of Hawaii, according to the United States Coast Guard.

Debris was spotted near Kaena Point, Oahu by the Coast Guard Hercules and Army Black Hawk aircrews at 11:28 pm (5:28 am EDT). Responders were searching for five missing aircrew members.</s>HONOLULU (AP) — U.S. Coast Guard and military crews are searching the ocean off Hawaii for five crewmembers of an Army helicopter that reportedly went down during a training exercise, authorities said Wednesday.

Officials at Wheeler Army Airfield near Honolulu reported losing communications around 10 p.m. Tuesday with the crew of a UH-60 Black Hawk, the Coast Guard said in a news release.

Responding teams reported spotting a debris field about 2 miles (3 kilometers) west of Kaena Point, Oahu, shortly before 11:30 p.m., the release said.

An airplane, two helicopters and several boats are being used in the search across an area with light winds and 2-foot seas.

Two Black Hawk crews were conducting training between Kaena Point and Oahu’s Dillingham Airfield at the time communications were lost, officials said.

Night training offshore is routine, said Lt. Col. Curtis Kellogg, public affairs officer for the Army’s 25th Infantry Division.

The search began immediately after one aircrew lost visual and video contact with the other helicopter, Kellogg said.

The two helicopters are elements of the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade.

The UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-bladed, twin-engine utility helicopter manufactured for the Army by Sikorsky Aircraft starting in the 1970s.</s>HONOLULU (WHDH) — The US Coast Guard says it is responding to a report of a downed Army Black Hawk helicopter with five crew about two miles off the coast of Oahu in Hawaii.

According to the Coast Guard press release, a debris field was spotted just before midnight on Tuesday. A search is underway for the five crew members.

The helicopter is an Army UH-60 Black Hawk.

Multiple Coast Guard crews are currently assisting in the search.

Personnel at the Wheeler Army Airfield called the Coast Guard late Tuesday night saying they lost communications with one of their air crews, sparking the search effort.

This is a developing story; stay with 7News for more information as it becomes available.</s>HONOLULU -- Crews searching for five soldiers missing from an Army helicopter crash off Hawaii have found parts of a fuselage and a helmet Wednesday.

Honolulu fire Capt. David Jenkins said that the items were found about 2 miles off Oahu's Kaena Point. He says the search is focused in the area.

The Fire Department has rescue boats at the scene, while the U.S. Coast Guard sent an airplane, helicopter and two boats. An Army helicopter crew also is looking.

Two UH-60 Black Hawk crews were conducting training between Kaena Point and Oahu's Dillingham Airfield late Tuesday when one aircrew lost contact with the other, the Coast Guard said in a statement.

Photos showed Army soldiers unloading suspected debris from the firefighters' boat at the harbor in the nearby town of Haleiwa.

Officials closed the state park at Kaena Point while the search was underway. Kaena is a remote spot where Oahu's northern and western coasts meet to form a small peninsula. The park's sandy coastline is home to a seabird colony and endangered Hawaiian monk seals.

A Coast Guard plane, two helicopters and several boats were being used in the search across an area with light winds and 2-foot (0.6-meter) seas.

Two Black Hawk crews were conducting training between Kaena Point and Oahu's Dillingham Airfield northwest of Honolulu when communications were lost, officials said. Clouds and a few showers were in the area at the time.

Night training offshore is routine, said Lt. Col. Curtis Kellogg, public affairs officer for the Army's 25th Infantry Division.

The search began immediately after one aircrew lost visual and video contact with the other helicopter, Kellogg said.

The two helicopters are elements of the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade.

The UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-bladed, twin-engine utility helicopter manufactured for the Army by Sikorsky Aircraft starting in the 1970s.

More than 3,000 Black Hawk aircraft are in service around the world, according to Sikorsky's parent company Lockheed Martin. The U.S. Army owns 2,300 of them.

In April, one crew member was killed and two others were injured when an Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed onto a golf course in Maryland during a routine training flight.

In 2015, 11 crew members were killed when an Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed into the water off Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.</s>Five crew members are missing after a US army helicopter crashed into the ocean off Hawaii during a night-time training exercise.

Officials at Wheeler Army Airfield near Honolulu reported losing communications with the crew of a UH-60 Black Hawk at 10pm local time on Tuesday (9am BST on Wednesday), the US coast guard said.

Rescuers later spotted a debris field about two miles west of Kaena Point, Oahu.

A plane, two helicopters and several boats are being used in the search across an area with light winds and 2ft seas.

Two Black Hawk crews were conducting training between Kaena Point and Oahu's Dillingham Airfield at the time communications were lost.

The search began immediately after one aircrew lost visual and video contact with the other helicopter, a spokesman said.

The two helicopters are elements of the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade.

The UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-bladed, twin-engine utility helicopter manufactured for the US army by Sikorsky Aircraft since the 1970s.</s>HONOLULU – A multi-agency team scoured the ocean off Hawaii for five soldiers aboard an Army helicopter that went down during a nighttime training exercise.

The UH-60 Black Hawk went missing when another Army helicopter training with it lost visual and radio contact about 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, said Lt. Col. Curtis Kellogg, a spokesman for the 25th Infantry Division.

Two pilots and three crew members were on board, he said. The Army has notified the soldiers’ families, Kellogg said.

“As we do this work, the soldiers and their families are in the forefront of our minds. That’s what we’re doing this for,” Kellogg said.

Honolulu Fire Department search and rescue crews found and collected pieces of helicopter fuselage and a helmet in a debris field about 2 miles (3 kilometres) off Kaena Point on Oahu. Photos showed Army soldiers unloading suspected debris from the firefighters’ boat and personal watercraft at the harbour in the nearby town of Haleiwa.

READ MORE: Black Hawk helicopter with 5 U.S. military members on board crashes off Hawaii

The search later moved to an area about 5 miles (8 kilometres) offshore where currents moving in different directions converge.

Officials closed the state park at Kaena Point while the search was underway. Kaena is a remote spot northwest of Honolulu where Oahu’s northern and western coasts meet to form a small peninsula. The park’s sandy coastline is home to a seabird colony and endangered Hawaiian monk seals.

A Coast Guard plane, two helicopters and several boats were being used in the search. The Army and Marine Corps joined the effort, as did Honolulu firefighters and lifeguards.

Two Black Hawk crews were conducting training between Kaena Point and Dillingham Airfield when communications were lost, officials said. Clouds and a few showers were in the area at the time.

The soldiers were training at night to maintain the skills they need to do their jobs, Kellogg said.

“Our aviation assets, as well as all of our soldiers, train at night. It’s what we do,” he said. They need these skills to accomplish their wartime mission, Kellogg said.

The two helicopters are elements of the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade based in Hawaii.

The UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-bladed, twin-engine utility helicopter manufactured for the Army by Sikorsky Aircraft starting in the 1970s.

More than 3,000 Black Hawk aircraft are in service around the world, according to Sikorsky’s parent company Lockheed Martin. The U.S. Army owns 2,300 of them.

In April, one crew member was killed and two others were injured when an Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed onto a golf course in Maryland during a routine training flight.

In 2015, 11 crew members were killed when an Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed into the water off Eglin Air Force Base in Florida.</s>Five people are missing after a US Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed off the coast of Hawaii.

A massive rescue has been been launched following the incident which is believed to have involved the chopper ditching into the ocean during a night-time training exercise.

It is not clear if the Pacific training exercise was in any way linked to the currently increased tension between the US and North Korea - and the latter's threat to bomb Guam.

The US Coast Guard is leading the search for the five who were on board the UH-60 which went down near the island of Oahu.

Reuters reports that Wheeler Army Airfield lost contact with the helicopter at around 10pm on Tuesday night local time - around 9am Wednesday morning UK time.

The US Coast Guard has only just acknowledged the search-and-rescue effort this afternoon (UK time Wednesday).

The aircraft was last pinpointed to be about two miles west of Kaena Point on Oahu - near where a debris field has been spotted by other Black Hawk aircrews and a Coast Guard Hercules.

Responding to the emergency are:

Two Black Hawk crews were reportedly conducting training between Kaena Point and Dillingham Airfield at the time communications were lost, the Coast Guard said.

Kaena Point is the westernmost tip of the island of O'ahu - and in Hawaiian means 'the heat'.

It is popular with surfers but is located in a remote area with no direct road access or rescue capablilities.

Weather at the scene is currently winds of 11mph with two-foot waves.

We'll be bringing you the very latest updates, pictures and video on this breaking news story.</s>Rescue crews are searching for an Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter with five people aboard that crashed about two miles off Kaena Point late Tuesday.

Rescue crews are searching for an Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter with five people aboard that crashed about two miles off Kaena Point late Tuesday.

A Black Hawk helicopter is shown in a file photo. The Coast Guard and military crews are searching for a overdue helicopter off the coast of Hawaii. (Source: Pixabay)

HONOLULU (AP) - U.S. Coast Guard and military crews are searching the ocean off Hawaii for five crewmembers of an Army helicopter that reportedly went down during a training exercise, authorities said Wednesday.

Officials at Wheeler Army Airfield near Honolulu reported losing communications around 10 p.m. Tuesday with the crew of a UH-60 Black Hawk, the Coast Guard said in a news release.

Responding teams reported spotting a debris field about 2 miles (3 kilometers) west of Kaena Point, Oahu, shortly before 11:30 p.m., the release said.

An airplane, two helicopters and several boats are being used in the search across an area with light winds and 2-foot seas.

Two Black Hawk crews were conducting training between Kaena Point and Oahu's Dillingham Airfield at the time communications were lost, officials said.

Night training offshore is routine, said Lt. Col. Curtis Kellogg, public affairs officer for the Army's 25th Infantry Division.

The search began immediately after one aircrew lost visual and video contact with the other helicopter, Kellogg said.

The two helicopters are elements of the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade.

The UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-bladed, twin-engine utility helicopter manufactured for the Army by Sikorsky Aircraft starting in the 1970s.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>Rescue teams searched for a downed Army Black Hawk helicopter with five crew members aboard that was last reported off the west coast of Hawaii, the US Coast Guard said on Wednesday.

Coast Guard Hercules and Army Black Hawk aircrews spotted debris near Kaena Point, Oahu at 11:28 pm local time after staff at Wheeler Army Airfield said they had lost contact with one of their UH-60 Black Hawk aircrews, the Coast Guard said.

Rescue crews searched for five missing people who were training between Kaena Point and Dillingham Airfield, also on Oahu, when communications were lost.
A United States Army Combat Aviation Brigade UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crashes off the coast of Hawaii, with five people on board. A United States Coast Guard-led search for the missing is underway.