08-08042

 

 

         
Flipper unit patch, circa 2008.
Property of

B Company - "Flippers"

3-82nd GSAB

Fort Bragg, North Carolina

2008 - 2009

 

 

         
August 2009: 08-08042 hovering at Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan.

             August 2009: 08-08042 hovering at Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan. Click-N-Go Here to view a larger image.

 

 

             08-08042, Boeing Vertol Tab Number M8042, was a CH-47F Chinook helicopter. The U.S. Army acceptance date was 13 January 2009. As of 15 August 2009, 08-08042 accumulated 197.0 aircraft hours.

   08-08042 was a new build airframe that utilized the power train components (blades, engines and transmissions, etc.) from 83-24122.

   08-08042 was initially assigned to B Company - "Flippers", 3rd General Support Aviation Battalion (GSAB), 82nd Airborne Division, located at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

   At some point, in early 2009, 08-08042 was deployed with the "Flippers" in support of contingency operations during Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF).

   On or about 14 October 2009, 08-08042 suffered a hard landing and was severely damaged.

   No crew member or passenger injuries were reported.

   As of 14 October 2009, the last known location of 08-08042 was in Afghanistan.

   Aircraft status: Crashed.

 

 

         
22 June 2009: CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 operating at an unknown location in Afghanistan.

             22 June 2009: CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 operating at an unknown location in Afghanistan. Click-N-Go Here to view a larger image.

 

 

         
August 2009: 08-08042 under going maintenance at Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan.

             August 2009: 08-08042 under going maintenance at Kandahar Air Field, Afghanistan. Click-N-Go Here to view a larger image.

 

 

          US Chinook in Accident

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter lost in Afghanistan.
   14 October 2009: About 20 UK service personnel were on a US helicopter which was involved in an accident in Afghanistan. Five US air crew members and about 30 Afghan personnel were also aboard the Chinook which made a "hard landing" in the south on Tuesday.

              Nobody was injured when CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042, crewed by members of B Company - "Flippers", 3rd General Support Aviation Battalion (GSAB), 82nd Airborne Division, crashed.

                Enemy action has been ruled out as a cause. The aircraft was operating normally and the air crew was wearing night vision goggles (NVGs) when a planned landing attempt was initiated. The aircraft "browned out" during the approach and landed in a waddy.

                Brown out is caused by the rotors kicking up a large amount of dust into the air and the pilots lose thier ability to see the ground. It is a particularly hazardous situation and difficult challenge to land a helicopter under those conditions.

             The UK personnel are in the process of being evacuated, says an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) spokesman.

             An investigation into what went wrong has been launched.

             The spokesman said commanders on the ground were planning the recovery of the helicopter.

 

 

          Black Watch soldiers secure downed Chinook

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 gets a lift from a MI-26 Halo helicopter in Afghanistan.
   14 October 2009: Scottish soldiers from the Black Watch have been mobilized to secure a crashed US Army Chinook helicopter and fend off Taliban attacks.

   The chopper suffered a hard landing in the notorious Upper Sangin Valley. Soldiers from Alpha (Grenadier) Company of the Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, were then mobilized at short notice to secure the crash site.

   A number of UK and Afghan troops had been on the troop carrying aircraft, and although it was badly
          damaged nobody was injured.

   To secure the area, recover the craft and prevent it falling into Taliban hands, 120 men from Alpha (Grenadier) Company were flown to the desert site.

             Utilizing elements of D Company, 3-82nd GSAB, 08-08042 was stripped of the heavier items such as the engines and rotor blades. An attempt to move it utilizing another CH-47F helicopter was made, but it was just too heavy.

         
An MI-26 Halo helicopter moves MH-47E Chinook helicopter 92-00476, March 2002.
The helicopter - pictured above - was eventually removed by slinging it under another helicopter, a MI-26 "Halo" from the former soviet military forces, and slowly lifting it to the relative safety of Kandahar Airfield. Shown to the right is a Halo that was used to move
          MH-47E Chinook helicopter 92-00476 off of Takhur Ghar mountain in Afghanistan in March of 2002.

             Major Matt Munro, Officer Commanding Alpha (Grenadier) Company said: "I'm delighted that this operation went so well. Given that we have worked so closely with the American aviators of the 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade throughout our seven month tour I'm pleased that we were able to play an important part in the recovery of one of their airframes.

             "It was a team effort that highlighted our high levels of preparedness and combat readiness."

             Major Neil Kugler, from Gilroy, California, Operations Officer of Task Force Tallon, 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade: "The troopers of TF Tallon and the jocks of the Black Watch 3 SCOTS Battlegroup developed a great professional relationship over the past four months during the conduct of numerous combat air assault operations.

             "It was fitting that the final combat mission in Afghanistan for the Black Watch was to recover one of our damaged aircraft."

             Lance Corporal Aaron Graham, 20, from Kirkcaldy, added: "This was unlike any other job we have done out here. Once again we produced the goods and were pleased to keep the Taliban firmly on the back foot".

 

 

         
An airlift of 08-08042 by an MI-26 "Halo" helicopter gets the stricken aircraft back to Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan.

             An airlift of 08-08042 by an MI-26 "Halo" helicopter gets the stricken aircraft back to Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan. Click-N-Go Here to view a larger image.

 

 

          High Definition Video

 

 

             The links below points to High Definition (HD) Video file of CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 under transport via an Russian made MI-26 "Halo" helicopter from the crash site to Kandahar Airbase, Afghanistan.


   Due to the large file size, it is recommended that you Right Click the link and select "Save Target As" to save the file to your computer before attempting to view.

 

 

         
   Click-N-Go Here to view a High Definition Video of CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 under transport via an MI-26 helicopter [6:09, 14.7 Mb, audio included].

 

 

         
   Click-N-Go Here to view a High Definition Video of CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 under transport via an MI-26 helicopter [3:24, 9.5 Mb, audio included].

 

 

             Anybody have the grid coordinates of the crash site? Please send us an email.

 

 

         
August 2009: SSG Andrew Scales, Flight Engineer, and SPC Matthew McCann, Crew Chief, on 08-08042 while deployed to Afghanistan.

             August 2009: SPC Matthew McCann (left), Crew Chief, and SSG Andrew Scales, Flight Engineer, on 08-08042 while deployed to Afghanistan. Click-N-Go Here to view a larger image.

 

 

         
2 September 2009: SPC Peter Tuccio, Crew Chief on 08-08042 while deployed to Afghanistan.

             2 September 2009: SPC Peter Tuccio, Crew Chief on 08-08042 while deployed to Afghanistan. Click-N-Go Here to view a larger image.

 

 

             The following photographs show CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after the hard landing in Afghanistan:

 

 

         
At the crash site: CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after the hard landing in Afghanistan.

 

 

         
At the crash site: CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after the hard landing in Afghanistan.

 

 

         
At the crash site: CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after the hard landing in Afghanistan.

 

 

         
At the crash site: CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after the hard landing in Afghanistan.

 

 

         
At the crash site: CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after the hard landing in Afghanistan.

 

 

         
At the crash site: CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after the hard landing in Afghanistan.

 

 

             The following photographs show CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar:

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

         
CH-47F Chinook helicopter 08-08042 after it was airlifted to Kandahar.

 

 

             The following CH-47F Chinook helicopters were originally fielded to B Company - "Flippers", 3rd General Support Aviation Battalion (GSAB), 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in late 2008 / early 2009:

 

 

         
04-08717 06-08028 06-08718 06-08719 06-08720
07-08039 07-08041 07-08721 07-08722 07-08723
07-08724 08-08042 08-08043    

 

 

          This aircraft was piloted by:

 

          Your Name Here.

 

 

          This aircraft was crewed by:

 

          SSG Andrew Scales, Flight Engineer, 2009

 

          SPC Matthew McCann, Crew Chief, 2009

 

          SPC Peter Tuccio, Crew Chief, 2009

 

          Your Name Here.

 

 

          Related Information

 

          F Model in Production

 

 

          The CH-47 - 40 years old and still circling the world.

         

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