Witnesses report US helicopter shot down in Iraq

The US military said today it has no reports of a helicopter going down after witnesses reported an Apache had crashed north of Baghdad.

Witnesses and police said the helicopter was shot down earlier today, sending a plume of smoke into the air near the Bani Tamim village, in the area around the Taji air base, 12 miles north of Baghdad.

Lt Col Josslyn Aberle, a US military spokeswoman, said initial reports did not find that a helicopter had gone down, but she said the military would do another check to be sure.

At least six US helicopters have crashed or been forced down under hostile fire since January 20, including a Marine Sea Knight helicopter that crashed last Wednesday near Taji, killing all seven people on board.

In the wake of the recent crashes, US officials have said they were reviewing flight operations and tactics but maintain there is no evidence of sophisticated new weapons used in any of the latest attacks.