Not Good News
Fox News is reporting that a USMC UH-1 with 8 aboard (6 US, 2 Nepalese) is missing in the vicinity of Charikot, Nepal. The aircraft was from Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 469.
It is unknown at this point whether the aircraft was able to land safely, or precisely where it may have returned to earth.
US Marines are in Nepal supporting humanitarian relief efforts in the aftermath of the recent Nepal earthquake. Regrettably, such relief operations are often dangerous – sometimes nearly as dangerous as a shooting war.
Should you be so inclined, now might be a good time to send a mental request to CINC-ALL regarding the well-being of these troops – one asking for His assistance in quickly locating and returning them safe and sound.
Category: Marine Corps, Military issues
There was another quake this morning US-time at the Nepal-China border, near Zhan, China. It was 7.3M with a depth of 10KM (6.2 miles), very shallow, and 59 people have so far been reported dead.
That is extremely rugged country. This article says an Osprey was sent to the last reported area, but found nothing.
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/us-marine-helicopter-missing-in-nepal-earthquake-aid-mission/ar-BBjGjx8
It is possible that the helo landed safely, but in an area where they can’t get a signal out.
The Marines were delivering aid items and had made one drop, were on their way to another location when they went out of contact. Those mountains are not gentle with anyone.
Sending a prayer out to whomever…and everyone…
Let’s hope at worst case, that these guys had to auto rotate in and are sitting on the ground safely some place waiting for daybreak.
Wait and see. Prayers out for those troops.
Hoping they are all OK and Divine Providence leads them all home. Bout time to retire them Hueys, they have served us well….
If it was a UH-1Y, it was factory-new. Besides, Blackhawks and Chinooks falling out of the sky ain’t exactly rare.
From Drudge:
“An U.S. Navy F/A-18 F Super Hornet has crashed in the Persian Gulf on Tuesday at about 9:30 A.M. EST, Navy official told USNI News this afternoon.
The crew onboard the two-person Boeing strike fighter ejected out of the aircraft and were safely recovered by crew aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), the service said.
…The more than $60 million fighter lost power shortly after takeoff.”
How many A10’s could that have bought. Thanks be the crew is safe.
The F/A-18 is an amzing bird, besides that $60 mil would have nothing to do with the A-10, mainly because the Navy doesn’t fly it. So it is a moot point.
Prayers Out that they’re found safe and sound. And yes, it can at times be very difficult at best to get a comms signal out in mountainous terrain like Nepal has.
I’ve been in a few different mountain ranges all on this continent and have a very healthy respect for any and all mountains no matter how peaceful they appear.
Mt Rainier kills several climbers every year because of avalanches storms and whatever else that big ass hunk of rock can toss at you.
To go down in the Himalayas is an accident of nightmarish proportions.
Those mountains are filled with DC-3’s American GI’s from WWII and tons of others that they have taken out. They called it the Hump when they flew over those mountains to deliver supplies to Merrill’s Marauder’s and he other troops fighting the Japanese in some of the most bitter fighting of that horrible struggle.
Godspeed to all of them and I hope that they will be found safe and sound, but my instinct tells me that it would be tough to come out of that alive.
Prayers to a merciful God for his intervention.