Army Investigates Crash Landing of Reserve Helicopter East of El Toro

Army accident investigators from Ft. Rucker, Ala., were on the scene Saturday of the crash landing of an Army Reserve helicopter east of El Toro that injured two crewmen Friday night and severely damaged the aircraft.

The crewmen, stationed at Los Alamitos, were able to get out of the aircraft before a fire began and were picked up by Marines, said Capt. Steve Lambert, spokesman for the Armed Forces Reserve Center in Los Alamitos.

The fire was so hot, Lambert said, that some aluminum pieces of the helicopter melted.

The two crew members apparently radioed the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station for help before their aircraft hit the ground about 9 p.m., Lambert said. Investigators will determine whether the Army UH-1H Huey helicopter crashed or made a hard emergency landing, he said, but it was clear to the investigators that the craft would never fly again.

The accident occurred about 9 1/2 miles east of the El Toro air station, in rugged terrain near Bell Canyon.

A search-and-rescue helicopter from El Toro air station transported the two crewmen to Mission Hospital/ Medical Center in Mission Viejo, said Staff Sgt. Richard Ness, spokesman for the Marine Corps base. One man suffered an arm injury and the other complained of chest pains, Ness said.

Lambert identified them as Chief Warrant Officer Rick McCaig of Santee, Calif., the pilot in command, and Chief Warrant Officer Brian Ward of Oceanside. Lambert did not know the specifics of their injuries but said they had been released from the hospital.

The helicopter had been on a routine night training flight, according to Lambert, who did not know whether other aircraft were accompanying it.