The Army on Friday identified the four crewmen who died Monday when their UH-60L Black Hawk helicopter crashed at Fort Hood, Texas.
The four are Sgt. 1st Class Toby A. Childers, 40, of Hays, Kansas; Chief Warrant Officer 3 Stephen B. Cooley, 40, of Cantonment, Florida; Sgt.1st Class Jason M. Smith, 35, of Destrehan, Louisiana; and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Michael F. Tharp, 40, of Katy, Texas.
The four were assigned to 2nd Battalion, 291st Aviation Regiment, First Army Division West. The aircraf was assigned to the 7th Battalion, 158th Aviation Regiment.
The four were on a routine training mission when the helicopter crashed n the northeast area of the base sometime after 5:49 p.m., the Army said.
An investigation team from the Army Combat Readiness Center headquartered at Fort Rucker, Alabama, is working to determine the cause of the crash.
The Black Hawk is the Army's main medium-lift utility and combat assault aircraft.
About 1,500 of the Sikorsky-built helicopters have been manufactured for the Army since 1978, starting with the A model and most, recently, the M variation, according to Sikorsky. Another 600 Black Horse helicopters have been delivered to foreign militaries.
Bryant Jordan can be reached at bryant.jordan@military.com. Follow him on Twitter at @bryantjordan.
