Two Mississippi National Guard officers died on Friday in a helicopter crash, a loss confirmed by the state’s governor across social media. The governor urged prayers for the officers and their families, noting that Mississippi will always be grateful for their service and will never forget them. The message appeared on the social network X.
The crash occurred around 2:00 p.m. local time, which is 20:00 GMT. According to the governor, a Apache AH-64 helicopter went down during a routine training exercise in Prentiss County.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Army paused all nonessential military flights after an incident in Alaska involved two Apache helicopters and resulted in three soldiers dead and one injured. Shortly before, two Black Hawk helicopters crashed in Kentucky during training, leaving nine soldiers dead. An Apache helicopter in Alaska had also experienced turbulence that injured two soldiers. During the temporary halt, the Army required all pilots to undergo targeted training to prevent similar accidents from occurring again.