A U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed in the Colorado foothills west of Denver on Tuesday morning [1].
The incident involves the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, an elite unit. Any mishap involving specialized aircraft and crew during routine training can prompt wider safety reviews of aviation protocols.
The aircraft, a UH-60 (MH-60) Black Hawk, was conducting routine training operations when it went down [1, 2]. The helicopter landed in a wooded area on the east side of Thorodin Mountain, located north of Golden Gate Canyon State Park in Gilpin County [3, 4].
Four crew members were aboard the aircraft at the time of the mishap [1]. Despite the nature of the landing, no injuries were reported [1].
"There were no injuries reported," the Gilpin County Sheriff’s Department said [1].
Reports on the nature of the event vary between a crash and a forced landing. One report described the aircraft as being "forced down" on the mountain [3], while other accounts classified the event as an aviation mishap [1, 4].
"The Army said it was an aviation mishap during routine training operations," a U.S. Army spokesperson said [1].
Emergency responders and military personnel managed the scene in the rugged terrain of the foothills. All four individuals on board escaped the aircraft unharmed [3].
“All four aboard escaped unharmed.”
The 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment is tasked with high-risk infiltration and exfiltration missions. While the lack of injuries in this incident prevents a tragedy, the Army typically conducts a formal safety investigation after any 'aviation mishap' to determine if mechanical failure or pilot error played a role, ensuring the fleet remains operational for special operations.
