2 El Toro Marines Killed in Copter Crash; 7 Unhurt

Two Marine helicopters from El Toro Marine Corps Air Station in Orange County collided Saturday morning in maneuvers about 70 miles east of here, killing two of the nine Marines aboard, authorities said.

The other seven Marines escaped injury, authorities said. The names of the dead were being withheld pending notification of family members.

Officials at Fallon Naval Air Station said the helicopters were performing routine training maneuvers when they collided at 8:45 a.m. in an uninhabited desert area near the base.

Olin Briggs, a spokesman for the air station, said there were four Marines in one helicopter and five in the other. The ones who died were in the four-person craft.

Churchill County Sheriff Bill Lawry said one of the helicopters received major damage while the other came away with moderate damage.

Authorities declined to speculate on the cause of the accident but said an investigation would begin immediately.

The CH-46 Sea Knights belonged to the Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron, which is permanently assigned to the Marine Corps Air Station in El Toro.

The squadron arrived at the Fallon station last week to participate in operation “High-Roller,” a two-week exercise designed to test combat readiness for the 4th Marine Air Wing.