2023 Alaska Mid-air Collision

On 27 April 2023, two AH-64 Apache helicopters belonging to the 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment, at Fort Wainwright, collided near Healy, Alaska, approximately south of Fairbanks, when returning from an exercise mission. The incident resulted in three military personnel killed with another one injured, and happened barely one month after two Black Hawk helicopters crashed during a routine training operation close to the Kentucky-Tennessee line, killing nine troops. The two fatal incidents led to the US Army halting all its aircraft, with the exception of those on "critical missions".

The incident

The two AH-64 Apache helicopters which were with the 1st Attack Reconnaissance Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment, were moving from a mission in the Donnelly Training Area to Fort Wainwright on 27 April 2023, when they collided at 1:39 pm (local time). The incident took place roughly east of Healy.

Two of the four troops were pronounced dead at the incident scene, while a third died en route to a Fairbanks hospital. The Army stated that the event was being investigated, and withheld the identities of the killed individuals until their relatives could be notified.

Aftermath

The United States Army indicated one day after the incident that it had suspended aviation units for training after 12 troops died in helicopter crashes in Alaska and Kentucky over the previous month. According to the army notification, the action halts all Army aviators, excluding those engaging in crucial missions, until they finish the necessary training.

See also

*2019 Alaska mid-air collision
* 2021 Alaska mid-air collision
*2023 Fort Campbell mid-air collision

References

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Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in 2023
Mid-air collisions involving helicopters
Mid-air collisions involving military aircraft
2023 in Alaska
April 2023 events in the United States
Denali Borough, Alaska
Aviation accidents and incidents in Alaska