All Three On Board Killed

A truck driver traveling along I-95 near Florence (SC) Tuesday night spotted it first -- the tangled wreckage of a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter missing for 24 hours.

The aircraft came to rest near an interstate overpass, on the banks of the Great Pee Dee River. Entangled in the wreckage were the bodies of three soldiers who were flying in heavy weather Monday night, reportedly training with night-vision goggles.

"The unit has spoken with the families, however, we are waiting for the official casualty notification procedures before we release the names," said Fort Bragg (NC) spokesman Rich Patterson. The UH-60 was based at Fort Bragg and was on its way to Florence when it went down, about 100 miles northeast of Columbia (SC).

The truck driver had heard about the search for the Black Hawk and spotted the downed aircraft on the riverbank. He was tipped off by damaged tree branches and what looked like a wheel sticking up in the air.

Military officials said the Black Hawk mission to Florence was "routine." Although the helo went down in thunderstorms, spokesmen from Fort Bragg say the weather wasn't outside normal operational limits.

FMI: www.army.mil