Afghan helicopter crash kills 6
Aircraft not brought down by enemy fire, U.S. military says
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The Pave Hawk helicopter came down during a medevac mission.
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BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan (CNN) -- The crash of a U.S. Air Force helicopter in southeastern Afghanistan has killed all six personnel onboard, a military spokesman said Monday.
According to Col. Roger King, the helicopter had taken off from Kandahar Air Base in southern Afghanistan on a medical rescue mission to Ghazni, a city about 160 kilometers (100 miles) south of Kabul.
The helicopter crashed about 29 kilometers (18 miles) north of Ghazni at 8:50 p.m. (1620 GMT) Sunday.
"This is not believed to be the result of any enemy action," King said.
He said an investigation has been ordered, but noted there were scattered clouds and thunderstorms in the area at the time of the crash.
The remains of those killed have been recovered and were being brought to the Bagram Air Base for examinations, King said.
The names are being held pending the notification of relatives.
The Pave Hawk is the Air Force version of the Army's Black Hawk.
Central Command officials said the helicopter mission was not part of Operation Valiant Strike, a recent mission involving members of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division in southeastern Afghanistan.
Authorities said Sunday's deaths bring to 36 the number of fatalities not related to hostilities since the coalition moved into Afghanistan in late 2001.
There have been 25 coalition forces killed in action during the same time frame.
-- CNN Senior Pentagon Correspondent Jamie McIntyre and CNN producer John Raedler contributed to this story.
