PILOT error caused a US Black Hawk helicopter to crash into the ground in Afghanistan, killing three Australian commandos and an American soldier in June last year.
Territory soldier Scott Palmer and comrades Tim Aplin and Ben Chuck, from the Sydney-based 2nd Commando Regiment, died after the chopper experienced a “controlled flight into terrain” as it was landing at 3.40am in a clearance operation in the Shah Wali Kot area of Kandahar province.
The moonless night was very hot (33C) and there were high winds.
Privates Aplin and Palmer died instantly and Private Chuck was pronounced dead after he arrived at the Role 3 trauma hospital in Kandahar.
Three other Black Hawks carrying Australian and American troops landed nearby and many of the troops put their lives on the line to remove their mates from the burning wreckage. Several have been secretly decorated for bravery.
The heavily censored report of the inquiry into the tragedy was finally released yesterday by the Vice-Chief of Defence, Air Marshal Mark Binskin, more than 16 months after the incident and a year after the document was written.