HONOLULU (AP) — All five crew members aboard a Black Hawk helicopter that crashed over the Pacific had life vests and an air bottle for underwater breathing, but Army officials and rescuers searching the turbulent waters off Hawaii for days
HONOLULU (AP) — All five crew members aboard a Black Hawk helicopter that crashed over the Pacific had life vests and an air bottle for underwater breathing, but Army officials and rescuers searching the turbulent waters off Hawaii for days had not seen signs of life as of late Friday.
Crews of Black Hawk helicopters undergo underwater crash and survival training before they come to Hawaii, said Master Sgt. Peter Mayes, a spokesman for the 25th Infantry Division. Soldiers simulate being on board a helicopter that’s crashed into the water and learn how to free themselves.
Mayes said there was no life raft on board the helicopter because operating procedure only calls for rafts when non-crew member soldiers or people without life vests are on board. The U.S. Coast Guard said Friday it is searching up to 50 miles off the remote point where the UH-60 helicopter crashed west of Oahu.