Apache Crew Went Down Near Utah Lake On Training Mission

Utah Governor Jon Huntsman called for a mandatory stand-down of all Utah Army National Guard aircraft this week, in the wake of a fatal accident Monday involving an AH-64 Apache helicopter.

"The stand-down, with necessary exception, will continue through a preliminary review of the incident and any appropriate inspection of all helicopters," said the governor's office.

An AH-64 Apache went down during a training flight Monday in Lake Mountain west of Utah Lake, Guard spokesman Maj. Hank McIntire said. The two Guardsman onboard were lost.

Another crew on a separate training flight Monday night followed the AH-64's original route when it failed to keep regular radio contact and located the wreckage, McIntire said.

The crew has been identified as Chief Warrant Officers 2 James R. Linder and Clayton S. Barnes of the 1st Battalion, 211th Aviation Regiment.

"As commander in chief of the National Guard, I grieve for the families and the whole Utah National Guard family," Huntsman said. "I think this is particularly difficult to bear considering both pilots safely returned in 2005 from their tour of duty in Afghanistan."

According to McIntyre the stand-down was for a safety review to make sure the crash wasn't caused by a maintenance issue. It is unknown how long the aircraft will be grounded.

Pete Adams, a Utah National Guard pilot, said the area where the helo went down is "typically where we train at night - our low-level night corridor."

"It's a common training area, a place where every one of us has flown 100 times," he said.

The Army Aviation Center in Alabama will send a team to investigate, according to McIntire.

This is the first fatal helicopter crash involving a Utah National Guard aircraft since 1985, when a UH-1 Huey went down and two aircrew members perished.

FMI: www.utah.gov/governor, www.utahguard.com