Two National Guard soldiers were killed Friday when the helicopter they were on board crashed during a routine training flight in Mississippi, officials said.
The soldiers were aboard an Apache AH-64 helicopter, which crashed in a wooded area near Booneville in Prentiss County around 2 p.m. Prentiss County Sheriff Randy Toler confirmed the death, according to the Mississippi National Guard.
“Our primary concern at this time is to ensure that adequate casualty support is in place to assist the surviving family members,” the Guard said in a statement.
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One soldier was assigned to Alpha Company, 1-149th Aviation Regiment, and the other was assigned to Delta Company, 2-151st Lakota Medical Evacuation Unit, military officials said.
This photo released by the U.S. Army shows an AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopter from the 1st Attack Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment flying over a mountain range near Fort Wainwright, Alaska, in 2019. Two National Guard members were killed Friday when their helicopter was struck. Officials said the plane crashed in Mississippi. (Cameron Roxbury/U.S. Army, via AP)
Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves offered his condolences to the soldiers’ families.
“Unfortunately, both troopers on board did not survive. Safety personnel are currently working with local authorities at the crash scene,” Reeves said in a statement. “Please join Mississippi First Lady Elie Reeves and me in praying for these two Guardsmen and their families. Mississippi will always be grateful for their service, and we will never forget them.” I will not forget.”
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Fox News Digital also reached out to the National Guard and local authorities. The Federal Aviation Administration contacted the National Guard.
The identity of the security guard and the cause of the crash have not been released.
Last week, a Utah Army National Guard helicopter crashed in what authorities called a “training accident,” injuring the two pilots on board. In the incident, an AH-64D Apache Longbow helicopter crashed into a West Jordan Army Air Support Facility.
