ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, February 5, 1997 TAG: 9702050110
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: JACKSONVILLE, N.C.
A Marine Corps investigation blamed a last-minute route change and problems with night-vision goggles for a collision of two military helicopters that killed 14 servicemen, including a Vinton man, last year.
The pilots couldn't see because street lights and other lights interfered with their goggles, the report said.
The CH-46E Sea Knight transport helicopter and the AH-1W Super Cobra attack helicopter crashed May 10 as war exercises opened at Camp Lejeune with thousands of troops from the United States and Britain.
Marine Cpl. Britt Todd Stacey, 26, of Vinton was one of the servicemen killed. He joined the Marines in 1992 and was recognized for outstanding individual performance in 1995.
He was a 1989 graduate of William Byrd High School.
The pilot and co-pilot of the CH-46E were the only survivors. They were cleared of wrongdoing by the investigation.
The squadron commander was reassigned after the crash to ROTC duty at the University of South Carolina, unidentified sources told WITN-TV.
The station obtained the crash report through the Freedom of Information Act, and Camp Lejeune made it public Tuesday.
- Associated Press
LENGTH: Short : 34 lines KEYWORDS: FATALITYby CNB