FOCUS | 2 Marine Helicopters Crash; 10 Missing

2 Marine Helicopters Crash Off Djibouti; 10 Missing
By Josh White
The Washington Post

Saturday 18 February 2006

Two U.S. Marine Corps helicopters crashed off the coast of northern Djibouti yesterday, and rescuers were searching for 10 missing crew members last night, according to U.S. military officials in the Horn of Africa.

Investigators were looking into the cause of the crash, which officials said happened during a training mission over the Gulf of Aden near Ras Siyyan. A spokeswoman for the military's task force in the Horn of Africa said it was unclear whether the helicopters collided, and she did not have further details of the crash or weather conditions at the time.

Djiboutian military near where the helicopters hit were able to respond immediately and rescued two crew members from the water, according to a U.S. Central Command news release. Those two crew members sustained injuries and were in stable condition at Camp Lemonier, a U.S. base in Djibouti.

Military officials in Washington said two CH-53 helicopters had crashed with 12 crew members aboard between them. Djibouti, U.S. and French officials were searching for possible survivors in the area, but the fates of the other crew members were unknown as of last night. The military was withholding the names of the crews pending notification of their families.

"The helicopters were on a training mission in the vicinity of Gordoria Range, which is used by CJTF-HOA for training purposes," the Centcom release said, referring to the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa. The release said the crash was reported at approximately 5:30 p.m. local time yesterday.

The U.S.-led task force in Africa has been focusing on training African nations to improve regional security, hoping to deter terrorist recruitment and to prevent extremists from gaining sanctuary in northern Africa. It is part of a long-term push to counter terrorist networks that have been making inroads on the continent.

The CH-53 helicopter is a heavy-lift aircraft that can carry equipment and personnel and usually has three to eight crew members.

Link Here