New York Army National Guard officials say human error caused the military helicopter crash that killed three soldiers in Mendon earlier this year.
Col. Richard Goldenberg, public affairs officer for the New York National Guard, said that a procedural error while rehearsing an emergency training maneuver caused the fatal Jan. 20 crash. Specifically, he said, actions taken by the crew during training put the aircraft in a position where it became unrecoverable. It was, he said, an in-flight emergency related to the controls of the aircraft itself.
Killed were all three soldiers on board, chief warrant officers Steven Skoda and Daniel Prial, both of Rochester, and Christian Koch of Honeoye Falls.
Military: Human error caused deadly Mendon NY chopper crash
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Military: Human error caused deadly Mendon NY chopper crash
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Photo provided by New York Army National Guard
Mendon resident Chief Warrant Officer Christian Koch was honored along with fellow soldiers, Chief Warrant Officer Daniel Prial and Chief Warrant Officer Steven Skoda at a memorial service last Friday (February 26) at the New York Army National Guard’s Aviation Support facility.
The three New York Army National Guard soldiers were killed in a helicopter crash when their UH-60 medical helicopter went down on a routine training mission in a farm field on West Bloomfield Road on January 20. The service was not open to the public; it was for the soldiers’ families as well as soldiers of Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 171st Aviation Regiment, New York Army National Guard commanders, selected first responders and other guests.
ROCHESTER â Sadness and mourning, tears and honor.
Hundreds of people attended a Friday memorial honoring and remembering three soldiers killed last month when their helicopter crashed in Ontario County.
Christian Koch, Steven Skoda and Daniel Prial died Jan. 20 when their UH-60 Blackhawk crashed off West Bloomfield Road in Mendon. They had been on a routine training mission.
An afternoon service was conducted Friday inside the Army Aviation Facility in Rochester.
âIt is really just a ceremony to celebrate their lives and recognize what they have done,â Bravo Company, 642 Commander Maj. Mike Jamieson said.
Chief Warrant Officers Steven Skoda, Christian Koch and Daniel Prial are remembered during a memorial service on Friday in Rochester. The three National Guard soldiers were killed during a routine training mission in Mendon on Jan. 20. Courtesy of the Army National Guard