Stunned

U.S. communities in Pacific stunned
by loss of troops in copter crash

By Joseph Giordono, Carlos Bongioanni and William Lindner, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Monday, February 25, 2002

The hope of search-and-rescue has sunken with the words search-and-recovery.

"We have determined that there is no chance to find survivors," Brig. Gen. Donald Wurster told reporters at a U.S. staging camp in Zamboanga, about the MH-47 Chinook helicopter that crashed Friday in darkened seas off the coast of Negros Island with 10 aboard.

After holding out hope of finding survivors for two days, the U.S. general in charge of American troops deployed to the Philippines said Sunday the mission had turned from search-and-rescue to search-and-recovery.

Dozens of ships, aircraft and land patrols have scoured the seas and beaches for debris or bodies from the crash, said Air Force Master Sgt. Michael Farris, a spokesman for the U.S. contingent in the Philippines, on Sunday.

The Army helicopter crashed around 2:30 a.m. local time while en route from Basilan Island to Mactan, Philippines, approximately 8 miles offshore the nearest island. The helicopter was operating in support U.S. efforts to train and advise the Armed Forces of the Philippines in their efforts against global terrorism.

"Certainly, this has touched everyone here profoundly," Farris said. "We have received fantastic support from the locals here. The local government and coast guard are out with us every day."

Weather has not been a significant factor, Farris said. Calm seas in the morning have been giving way to rougher swells and winds in the afternoon, but that has not hampered the mission.

"We will do everything possible to retrieve additional items and any human remains from the search area," Wurster said.

Farris explained that in a tragic instant, the American mission in the Philippines completely changed.

"For those of us on the ground here, the mission of training, assisting and advising the Philippine military ended at 2:30 a.m. on the morning of the 22nd," Farris said. All efforts are concentrated on recovering their comrades from the sea.

The crew included members of Echo company’s "Night Stalkers" from Taegu, Korea, and two members of the 320th Special Tactics Squadron at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa.

Servicemembers at bases throughout the Pacific expressed shock and sadness at the official announcement Sunday that all 10 Americans aboard the Army special operations helicopter are presumed dead.

"Both these men were doing what they wanted to do, serving their country. They were fighting terrorism. They had trained long and hard to do this mission," said Maj. Jeffrey Staha, commander of the 320th Special Tactics Squadron at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, where the two Air Force members presumed killed were stationed. "It is a sad day for our unit."

The two men, Master Sgt. William L. McDaniel II and Staff Sgt. Juan M. Ridout, volunteered for the mission, Staha noted.

Three bodies have been recovered near the site where the twin-rotor MH-47 Chinook went down early Friday morning. Those bodies were transported to Kadena, but officials have not announced the identities.

"The bodies that were recovered are being prepared for transport to Dover," Wurster said.

All recovered items would be handed over to an investigation team to determine the accident’s cause. A safety investigation team is en route from the U.S. Army Safety Center, Fort Rucker, Ala.

The team from Fort Rucker will work closely with the Philippine military, and local, regional and national authorities in the conduct of the investigation.

Wurster added that a memorial service would be held at the U.S. camp on Cebu on Tuesday.

A military spokesman in Korea said a memorial service for the eight members of the Night Stalkers lost in the crash is set for 2:30 p.m. Tuesday at the K-2 gymnasium on Taegu Air Base in Taegu, Korea.

The base is the home of Company E, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne).

"I can’t believe it happened to them," said a U.S. Air Force Security Forces troop at the K-2 main gate, who said he knew Maj. Curtis D. Feistner, who went down in the crash.

News about the victims has been slow in coming, and only today did troops at Camp Walker and Camp Henry in Taegu say they had heard some of the crew members on the Chinook were from K-2.

The crash was briefly mentioned during Sunday services at the Camp Walker Chapel when the Catholic priest asked parishioners to pray for the victims and their families. A memorial service for the 160th crew is scheduled for Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. at the K-2 Air Base gymnasium.

As for reports that the crash has led to the grounding of the remaining three MH-47 Chinooks in the Philippines, Farris said he had not heard that, though "it doesn’t mean that hasn’t happened."