Shaffer
02-26-04, 08:18 AM
FALCON HEIGHTS, Texas -- Pilot error caused the January 2003 helicopter crashes that killed four Marines helping the U.S. Border Patrol in a drug interdiction mission in south Texas, the military said Wednesday.
Investigators concluded that the two AH-1E Supra CobraMarine choppers, each with a two-man crew, were flying too close together during the nighttime operation.
The rotor blades tangled and the helicopters crashed, according to Marine Forces Reserve officials in New Orleans.
Two other helicopters involved in the operation landed safely.
The four victims were reserve aviators based at Camp Pendleton, Calif.
They were helping the Border Patrol cover Falcon Lake, a popular transfer point for marijuana and cocaine along a stretch of the Rio Grande about 200 miles south of San Antonio.
Investigators concluded that the two AH-1E Supra CobraMarine choppers, each with a two-man crew, were flying too close together during the nighttime operation.
The rotor blades tangled and the helicopters crashed, according to Marine Forces Reserve officials in New Orleans.
Two other helicopters involved in the operation landed safely.
The four victims were reserve aviators based at Camp Pendleton, Calif.
They were helping the Border Patrol cover Falcon Lake, a popular transfer point for marijuana and cocaine along a stretch of the Rio Grande about 200 miles south of San Antonio.