2 Die in Crash of Navy Copter

A Navy helicopter on a training mission crashed in a rugged canyon today, killing two of the four crew members and seriously injuring the others, authorities said.

The twin-engine Huey helicopter, part of the Navy’s Antarctic Support Squadron, was stationed at Point Mugu Naval Air Station during the Antarctic winter, Lt. Cmdr. Don Lewis said. The crew was in training to support the National Science Foundation, ferrying supplies and scientists in and out of the foundation’s South Pole facilities. There was no indication the helicopter was in trouble on the mission in the Los Padres National Forest mountains. “There was no SOS or Mayday call received,” Lewis said.