Norfolk helicopter crash: bodies of four Americans from US Air Force to be removed

 
Crash: the wreckage of the US Air Force HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter
PA
Staff|Agency9 January 2014

The bodies of four American servicemen killed in a helicopter crash during a training exercise on the north Norfolk coast are set to be removed today.

Captains Christopher S. Stover and Sean M. Ruane, Technical Sergeant Dale E. Mathews and Staff Sergeant Afton M. Ponce died when their Pave Hawk helicopter came down on a marsh near Cley-next-the-Sea on Tuesday night.

Investigators spent yesterday at the scene of the tragedy, where debris, including live ammunition, is believed to have been strewn across an area the size of a football pitch.

The helicopter had flown from RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk for a training exercise near a Norfolk beauty spot popular with birdwatchers.

Investigation: a police helicopter and emergency services at the scene (Picture: Getty)
Getty

Colonel Kyle Robinson, a US Air Force 48th Fighter Wing commander who is based at RAF Lakenheath, said: "We continue to think of the loved ones who are experiencing such a tragic, sudden loss.

Search: military personnel and emergency services (Picture: Getty)
Getty

"The Liberty Wing feels as though it has lost members of its family, and we stand by to support one another and these airmen's families during this difficult time."

According to the Guardian, residents have regularly complained about low-flying aircraft in the area, saying they posed a safety risk.

Base: the entrance to RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk (Picture: PA)
PA

Wendy Wyatt, a former local councillor who lives near the crash site, told the newspaper: "They are going too low. I don't know whether they are allowed to but something needs to be done."

A police cordon is expected to remain in place at the scene until Monday. The public have been asked to stay away while authorities investigate.

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