Bell OH-58D Kiowa similar to accident aircraft. Photo by Ssgt. Shane A. Cuomo. US Army

A Bell OH-58D Kiowa crashed at Wheeler Army Airfield (HHI) in Hawaii during a maintenance test flight yesterday (May 27, 2009) at approximately 3:30 PM local time.  The two army aviators on board were killed.  While the pilots have not been identified yet, one died at the scene of the accident and the other at Wahiawa General Hospital.

The aircraft, belonging to the 25^th Combat Brigade, was apparently still under control of the pilots as they attempted to land at the airfield.  While officials have not discussed what exactly happened as it is under investigation, a local army official did say it was a hard landing that caused the accident.  The helicopter caught fire after the crash.  Some witnesses reported that the skids on the helicopter appeared to be broken, but it wasn’t clear whether this was what led to the problem or a result of the hard landing.

Of course, since the military is tight-lipped about their accidents, it may take me a while to update this post.  The investigation will be undertaken by the US Army Safety Center.

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