Tennessee National Guard Black Hawk helicopter crash victims identified: NPR

Tennessee National Guard chief warrant officers Danny Randolph (left) and Daniel Wadham were killed Wednesday in a Black Hawk helicopter crash during a training flight in Madison County, Alabama.

Tennessee National Guard

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Tennessee National Guard

Tennessee National Guard chief warrant officers Danny Randolph (left) and Daniel Wadham were killed Wednesday in a Black Hawk helicopter crash during a training flight in Madison County, Alabama.

Tennessee National Guard

The Tennessee National Guard has named the two pilots who died in a Black Hawk helicopter crash in Madison County, Ala., near the Tennessee border, Wednesday.

Daniel Wadham and Danny Randolph were killed during a training flight in which their helicopter “rapidly descended and slammed into the ground,” the Tennessee National Guard said in a statement Thursday. Both held the rank of Chief Warrant Officer 3 and had served 15 and 13 years, respectively.

They were approaching Huntsville Executive Airport when the helicopter crashed near Alabama Highway 53 and Burwell Road, the Guard said. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.

“Words cannot express my sorrow for the loss of these two Tennessee National Guardsmen,” said Brigadier General Warner Ross, Tennessee’s adjutant general.

No other soldiers or civilians were injured, according to the authorities. They were the only ones on board.

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said he and his wife are “saddened by the tragic loss of two members of the Tennessee National Guard. Please join us in uplifting their families in prayer and support during this time of untold grief.”

The Madison County Sheriff’s Office said debris could be scattered in the area near the crash site and asked that people not touch it or try to move it.