Six US soldiers feared dead in 'copter crash

Six US soldiers were feared to have been killed when an Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed near the north-central city of Tikrit today.

The US military in Belgrade said that four soldiers had died, but a US officer on the scene said that all six on board were dead.

It was not known whether the aircraft went down due to mechanical failure of hostile fire, a spokesman said.

The helicopter went down about 9:40 a.m. on a riverbank along the Tigris River about half a mile from the US base in Saddam Hussein’s former palace.

The military said it did not know how many people were aboard.

White smoke was seen rising from the wreckage and three other helicopters were hovering overhead.

“We don’t know if it was a mechanical failure or hostile fire,” Major Jossyln Aberle, spokeswoman for the 4th Infantry Division, said.

On Sunday, a US Army Chinook helicopter was shot down near Fallujah, killing 16 people and injuring 26.

On October 25, a Black Hawk was shot down near Tikrit and one crew member was injured.

Another US officer who asked not to be named said there had been exchanges of gunfire near the Tigris River, and that two loud booms were heard before the helicopter went down.