Marines Killed in Helicopter Crash Were Based in Hawaii

The Associated Press reports that military officials have released the names of six Marines killed when their helicopter crashed Thursday in Afghanistan.

The crash in the southern province of Helmand was the deadliest in Afghanistan since August, when 30 American troops died after a Chinook helicopter was apparently shot down in Wardak province in the center of the country.

All six were based at Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, said base spokeswoman 1st Lt. Diann Olson.

The dead were:

• Capt. Daniel Bartle, 27, of Ferndale, Wash.
• Capt. Nathan McHone, 29, of Crystal Lake, Ill.
• Master Sgt. Travis Riddick, 40, of Centerville, Iowa
• Cpl. Jesse Stites, 23, of North Beach, Md.
• Cpl. Kevin Reinhard, 25, of Colonia, N.J.
• Cpl. Joseph Logan, 22, of Willis, Texas

Bartle and McHone were the pilots of the aircraft, while Riddick was the helicopter’s crew chief. Their squadron had been sent in August to Afghanistan as part of a seven-month deployment, Olson said.

A full report is available HERE.

Six Marines Killed in Helicopter Crash Reports AP

Anonymous Defense Official

Associated Press is reporting that all six forces killed in the crash of a U.S. helicopter in Afghanistan were U.S. Marines according to an anonymous defense official. You can read the AP update HERE.

An earlier AP report:

A NATO helicopter has crashed in southern Afghanistan, killing six members of the international military force, the U.S.-led coalition said Friday.

The cause is still being investigated, but a coalition statement said there was no enemy activity in the area at the time of Thursday’s crash, which brought the number of international forces killed in Afghanistan this month to 24.

The coalition did not disclose the nationalities of those killed and would not release details of the crash until the families of the dead were notified.

The helicopter crash occurred on the same day that a suicide car bomber killed at least seven civilians outside a crowded gate at Kandahar Air Field, a sprawling base for U.S. and NATO operations in the south. The Taliban insurgents claimed responsibility, saying they were targeting a NATO convoy.

You can read the initial news article HERE.