31 Marines Killed in Helicopter Crash in Iraq

Some admin might want to clean up the caps on the title I banged this one out quickly ....sorry my fault ...the caps in the title I mean not the helicopter .

So was it a crash or shot down ???

just gone up to 36 (reuters)

have been shot down.

"According to the initial investigation, the helicopter crashed due to a mechanical failure or poor weather conditions, military officials said. An Accuweather satellite photo of the region taken Wednesday showed a sandstorm in the area where the Sea Stallion went down, two days after more widespread sandstorms grounded all air traffick in Iraq."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/
"The cause of the chopper crash is still under investigation, although it appears to be weather-related, according to Gen. John Abizaid, chief of U.S. Central Command.

"The weather was bad. We don't know of any enemy action; the investigation continues," he said."

http://www.cnn.com/
Why doesn't the Guardian include that they think it was weather related? Isn't this the same news site that sent letters to the U.S. telling people not to vote for Bush?

the general reporting i get the impression of a missle hit it a SAM-7 or equivelant missle. As far as copters crashing, since the war in Afghanistan they all fall for mechanical failures, not one by "enemy" fire. This one is yet another attempt to cover up their losses and public image, after all the US military/and machines are invincible so they never get killed/damaged by their enemies.

helicopters are not that easy to fly and they do suffer from mechanical problems much more often than a normal fixed wing craft. Also given the amount of useage the military makes of them, it's reasonable to assume that you would see more mechanical errors come up than normal civilian use. I myself was in a bird that once had to make a emergency landing when we had engine problems, and it happens more often than you would think. Add in sandstorm to the equation, and you couldn't force me to get on one of them.

Gnaglor, it's funny that you mention the guardian. Everytime I read their site I feel like I'm reading a supermarket tabloid. I never read their trash anymore. I put them in the same boat as "The National Enquirer".

You had better add Associated Press to that list because that's where they get a lot of their international stories.... if you don't like the news shoot the messenger :-)

Iraqi witnesses said the helicopter was hit by one of two surface-to-air missiles fired at it, but the US military has not confirmed the cause.

One military spokesman said the helicopter was hit by an "unknown weapon", but later, the military said it might have crashed while taking evasive action.

"We are aware of eyewitnesses seeing what they presumed to be missile trails," US army Colonel William Darley told reporters.

Crashing while taking evasive action is the same as being shot down in real terms.