{"id":24954,"date":"2020-08-11T16:25:57","date_gmt":"2020-08-11T16:25:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/08\/11\/mh-47-helo-task-saturated-and-under-pkm-fire-had-zero-visibility-prior-to-fatal-2017-mishap\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T02:36:43","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T02:36:43","slug":"mh-47-helo-task-saturated-and-under-pkm-fire-had-zero-visibility-prior-to-fatal-2017-mishap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2020\/08\/11\/mh-47-helo-task-saturated-and-under-pkm-fire-had-zero-visibility-prior-to-fatal-2017-mishap\/","title":{"rendered":"MH-47 helo, task saturated and under PKM fire, had zero visibility prior to fatal 2017 mishap"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A catastrophic <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/flashpoints\/2017\/10\/29\/pentagon-identifies-soldier-killed-in-afghanistan-helicopter-crash\/\" target=_blank>MH-47G helicopter crash<\/a> during a mission to drop off British <a href=\"https:\/\/www.armytimes.com\/news\/your-army\/2019\/08\/27\/ranger-was-killed-by-afghan-friendly-fire-during-night-raid-on-al-qaida-investigation-shows\/\" target=_blank>special operators in Afghanistan<\/a> three years ago was caused by \u201csevere brownout conditions\u201d that engulfed the aircraft, caused it to drift and ultimately strike a tree several feet before touchdown, according to an investigation obtained this month through a Freedom of Information Act request.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The tree strike caused damage to the MH-47\u2032s rotor, and though the U.S. crew members were able to off-load the British ground force, they crashed mere seconds after attempting to take off again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The illumination on the night of the Oct. 27, 2017, crash was zero. In addition to a confined helicopter landing zone and a task-saturated cockpit, the Chinook took fire before touching down that \u201cdiverted the aircrew\u2019s attention away from the task of landing the helicopter safely,\u201d the investigation reads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The crash that followed took the life of the MH-47\u2032s co-pilot, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jacob Sims, and injured six other U.S. service members. Sims received the Purple Heart medal after the incident, his wife, Alicia Marie, told Army Times. The medal is awarded for wounds sustained in combat against enemy forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The crew was part of a helicopter assault force made up of three MH-47s from the U.S. Army\u2019s elite 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. They were ferrying several dozen United Kingdom Special Forces troops on a raid near Mani village, in Logar province\u2019s Kharwar district.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">About 30 seconds before touchdown, the team took enemy fire from PK machine guns, though the investigation concluded that enemy fire did not down the helicopter. Aircrew manning M134 mini-guns on the ramp returned fire and the MH-47 prepared to land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1849\" height=\"923\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-CW2-Jacob-Sims-web.png.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-52903\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-CW2-Jacob-Sims-web.png.png 1849w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-CW2-Jacob-Sims-web.png.png?resize=300,150 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-CW2-Jacob-Sims-web.png.png?resize=768,383 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-CW2-Jacob-Sims-web.png.png?resize=1024,511 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ARM-CW2-Jacob-Sims-web.png.png?resize=1536,767 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1849px) 100vw, 1849px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jacob Sims was killed Oct. 27 in a helicopter crash in Logar province, Afghanistan. (Army)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The pilots were \u201cextremely busy on the radios coordinating with all the air players in the close air support stack due to the complexity of the mission,\u201d the investigation reads, noting that the air players included AC-130 gunships, F-16 fighters, AH-64 Apaches and multiple ISR platforms. \u201cIt appears [the pilot] was doing more work than he was supposed to be doing while he was attempting to land.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The investigator\u2019s interviews with survivors \u201chighlight a cockpit that was task saturated\u201d with an \u201cexcessive workload\u201d that should have been shared with other aircraft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The brownout conditions made the approach \u201cexponentially more difficult,\u201d the investigator wrote. The helicopter drifted inside the brownout and its aft rotor system struck a tree, causing a mechanical failure that ultimately rendered the aircraft unable to generate lift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The crew felt the aircraft shaking violently but it had already made it to the ground. One soldier told the investigator that the MH-47 was shaking worse than he had ever experienced and said there was an urgency to disembark the ground force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Despite the shaking, the crew attempted to depart, flying for less than 15 seconds before they crashed 400 meters from the HLZ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe description from all the crewmembers is similar at this point \u2014 the aircraft shaking had increased, and then it felt like they flew into a wall,\u201d the investigation reads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When the crew awoke, the MH-47 was upside down with the ramp crushed shut, the cockpit and forward part of the aircraft was demolished and fires had started on both ends. The soldiers who regained consciousness first released themselves from their emergency restraints and began searching for their teammates in the wreckage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One soldier was pinned by the mini-gun mount and had to be cut from his helmet to be evacuated. Another had to be freed from his seat, where he was strapped in and hanging upside down. There was only one discernable exit, near a round window, and the crew had to drop their gear to squeeze through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An ISR platform observed the crash and an AC-130 gunship called out \u201cfallen angel\u201d over the radio net, alerting others of the mishap. After nine minutes, the ground force linked up with the survivors. Though injured and in need of medical evacuation, the entire crew survived except for Sims. An autopsy determined he died instantly during the crash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sims was on his fourth deployment to Afghanistan with the special operations aviation task force. The pilot-in-command of the MH-47, who was unnamed in the investigation, was on his 16th deployment with the task force. Prior to the mishap, the MH-47 crew had flown about seven missions together in the previous 35 days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The \u201croot cause\u201d of the crash was poor helicopter landing zone selection, the investigator determined. The HLZ was a confined area measuring 125 by 195 feet. Those dimensions could\u2019ve worked for an HLZ with no obscuration, but instead, heavy dust conditions were present at the site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 160th SOAR crews selected the HLZs during the mission, which is not typical, the investigation stated. Usually, the ground force commander selects the HLZs based on their scheme of maneuver and the anticipated risk of enemy contact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The investigation did not say whether the air planners knew about the heavy dust conditions, and it did not fault any particular planner. However, the investigator wrote, the crew\u2019s great deal of experience \u201cled to overconfidence\u201d with regard to landing in \u201ca confined area under heavy dust conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMore than 15 years of operating in this environment has led to an acceptance of risk and overconfidence in HLZ selection,\u201d the investigation reads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Afghan National Army personnel helped remove the wreckage over the course of two days. A fire that continued to burn after the crew escaped the crash site \u201ccooked off\u201d the ammunition inside and made it unapproachable for hours. The aircraft was not distinguishable after the fire, and the ground force detonated thermite grenades to destroy the remaining sensitive items inside.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When the crew awoke, the MH-47 was upside down with the ramp crushed shut, the cockpit and forward part of the aircraft was demolished and fires had started on both 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