sikorsky uh-60l black hawk (92-26448)

SIKORSKY UH-60L BLACK HAWK (REGISTRATION: 92-26448)
In the early hours of 21 June, four US Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters of Task Force 'No Mercy' were transporting Coalition personnel into the Shah Wali Kot region of Kandahar Province. During the approach to the final check point the first helicopter of the four (carrying ten Australian soldiers and a number of US Army personnel) crashed at high speed into a slight embankment in open desert terrain at 3.39am. The impact caused the helicopter to roll and the fuselage to catch fire. The three remaining Black Hawks responded immediately, some of these landing close to the crash site to provide initial medical assistance and a security cordon around the area.

The crash claimed the lives of three Australian soldiers. 8251206 Private Timothy James Aplin and 8230813 Private Scott Travis Palmer were killed instantly, while 8491591 Private Benjamin Adam Chuck was pronounced dead from his wounds shortly after arriving at the NATO Role 3 Multinational Medical Facility in Kandahar. One of the US Army crewmen on the aircraft, 25 year old Staff Sergeant Brandon M. Silk was also killed. All three Australian soldiers killed were from the Sydney based 2nd Commando Regiment.

Another seven Australian Commandos and several US Army aircrew on-board the helicopter were injured in the crash, some very seriously. Those seriously wounded were evacuated by aeromedical flights to Landstuhl Regional Medical Centre in Germany for immediate treatment.