U.S. helicopter crashes in Indonesia
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-01-10 10:24

A U.S. helicopter with 10 people on board crashed near the Banda Aceh airport Monday while on a tsunami-relief operation, a U.S. military spokesman said.

It was not yet known if anybody was killed or injured, said Joe Plenzler, a U.S. military spokesman in Medan, 250 miles southeast of Banda Aceh.

Two U.S. servicemen search for pieces of debris from a U.S. Navy Seahawk helicopter which crashed in a rice paddy less then a kilometer away from Banda Aceh's airport early Monday morning Jan 10, 2005. The crew members were all able to leave the aircraft and were airlifted to a U.S. Navy ship off the coast. [AP]

The SH60 helicopter crashed in a rice paddy about 500 yards from the airport in Banda Aceh, the main city on Indonesia's tsunami-battered Sumatra island, as it was trying to land, he said.

"There was no fire ball but a little smoke," he said. "It landed on its side."

A Singapore air force officer, Andre Nabaison, said he thought all 10 on board the chopper survived. He was not sure about injuries.

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