Report: Afghanistan helo crash kills 6 Marines - Air Force News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Air Force Times

Report: Afghanistan helo crash kills 6 Marines

A senior defense official says all six reported killed in the crash of a U.S. helicopter in Afghanistan were Marines, according to the Associated Press.

The helicopter crashed Thursday in Afghanistan’s southern province of Helmand. CBS News and Fox News said the crash involved a Marine CH-53 Sea Stallion. The official says there is no indication that the helicopter was hit by enemy fire, the Associated Press reported.

The Associated Press also reported Taliban spokesman Qari Yousef claimed insurgents shot down the helicopter, a Chinook, in Musa Qala district of Helmand province. The Taliban frequently exaggerate the number of people they claim to have killed.

The defense official who said all six were Marines spoke on condition of anonymity because the U.S. command in Afghanistan had not yet publicly released details, including the nationalities of the dead.

The helicopter crashed about midnight local time (2:30 p.m. ET) in Helmand province.

The crash brings the NATO death toll to 10 service members in 24 hours. An Afghan soldier killed four French troops when he opened fired on them in eastern Afghanistan on Friday.