Monday, an Iraqi Air Force plane
crashed close to the Iran border:
An Iraqi Air Force aircraft crashed northeast of Baghdad close to the Iranian border on Monday with four U.S. military personnel and an Iraqi on board, the U.S. military said in a statement.
Sources said the aircraft went down during a sandstorm near the town of Khanaqin shortly before noon (0800 GMT). It was not immediately clear if the aircraft was a helicopter or fixed-wing plane.
Since the initial report, more information has been released. It's not clear what they were doing there, but the US servicemen on board had very specialized skills related to invasions.
First, a
.pdf map of Iraq. Look north east of Baghdad and you'll find Khanaqin, the city near where the plane crashed. Khanaqin is not only close to the Iran border, but looks like its right on it. Here's another good
.pdf map of Iraq
Second, a US Air Force press release from yesterday:
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFPN) -- Four U.S. Airmen and one Iraqi airman were killed May 30 when an Iraqi air force Comp Air 7SL aircraft crashed in eastern Diyala province during an operational mission.
i-Newswire, 2005-05-31 - The aircraft belonged to Iraqi's 3rd Squadron and is a single engine high-winged aircraft used for surveillance and movement of people. The Iraqi air force had seven of these aircraft in its inventory.
The crash happened near Jalula which is about 50 miles northeast of Ba'qubah. The aircraft left Kirkuk Air Base at about 10 a.m. on a mission to Jalula.
An Iraqi civilian reported the crash to Joint Communications Center officials in Khanaqin at noon. Iraqi and coalition forces in the area responded to the crash site and secured the immediate area.
The names of the Airmen killed are being withheld pending notification of next of kin.
So the plane, a fixed wing Comp Air 7SL, was, according to the Air Force, on an operational mission. The AP also has an article about this crash today, but they labelled it a training mission. Wonder who was being trained? Here's an image of a Brazilian Comp Air 7SL:
Today, the Department of Defense issued a press release identifying the servicemen killed in the crash:
The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of four airmen who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. The airmen died May 30 in the crash of an Iraqi air force aircraft during a training mission in eastern Diyala province. They are:
*Maj. William Downs, 40, of Winchester, Va., assigned to the 6th Special Operations Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
*Capt. Jeremy Fresques, 26, of Clarkdale, Ariz., assigned to the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
*Capt. Derek Argel, 28, of Lompoc, Calif., assigned to the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
*Staff Sgt. Casey Crate, 26, of Spanaway, Wash., assigned to the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla.
All Special Forces soldiers. I heard on the radio this morning that one of the soldiers, Casey Crate, was from Spanaway, WA, near where I live. The radio piece included a statement from his mom that he was a forward combat controller with the Air Force. This really peaked my curiosity: what were these guys, including someone with combat air support skills, doing on the Iran border?
So I googled the names of the soldiers and found these references:
June 4, 2002
2nd Lt. Jeremy Fresques , chief of communications and information for the 56th CS, begins training in August at Hurlburt Field, Fla.
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"After finishing training, I'll be assigned as either a team leader or an assistant leader for a special tactics squadron," Lieutenant Fresques said.
"My job will be to make sure my team is fully trained, equipped and ready to do our mission as combat controllers that pave the way for other forces to arrive, when we are called to fight we'll be ready to go without hesitation."
Pave the way for other forces to arrive....
Happy June 1st....