Afghanistan helicopter crash kills 31 US troops including 22 Seals

• Taliban claims it brought chopper down in rocket attack
• At 31 deaths in total, it's highest number of U.S. casualties in one incident
• Seven Afghan soldiers die in the crash
• President Obama mourns this 'extraordinary sacrifice'
  
• Afghan president sends condolences to Obama
  

By Daily Mail Reporter

Last updated at 6:26 PM on 6th August 2011

Twenty two Navy Seals from the unit that killed Osama bin Laden were among those lost in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan.

The operators from Seal Team Six were flown by a crew of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, confirms one current and one former U.S. official.

Both spoke on condition of anonymity because families are still being notified of the loss of their loved ones.

One source says the helicopter was carrying 22 Seals, three Air Force air controllers, seven Afghan Army troops, a dog and his handler, and a civilian interpreter, plus the helicopter crew.

This was the largest single loss of life ever for Seal Team Six, known as the Naval Special Warfare Development Group. It was also the worst single loss of life since the war began.

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Gunned down: A twin-rotor Chinook, same as the one pictured here in Afghanistan in June, was brought down after a Nato operation in an area where insurgents were gathering

The helicopter was reportedly shot down by insurgents with an RPG as it returned from a night raid on a militant gathering in the Tangi Valley, Wardak province west of Kabul.

Members of the Navy Seals killed Osama bin Laden earlier this year and the heavy loss of life will be a blow to the elite unit which has a central role in targeting Taliban leaders in Afghanistan.

The tragedy also comes as America draws down its presence in Afghanistan and attempts to hand over responsibility for security to Afghan forces. Seven Afghan soldiers were also killed in the crash.

The special operations troops were returning from the village of Jaw-e-mekh Zareen where they had been involved in a two-hour fire fight when insurgents targeted the Chinook.

Wreckage was reportedly strewn across the area, after the helicopter crashed carrying a team of 25 Navy Seals, according to ABC news. Also on board were the American crew and a team of Afghan special forces.

Barack Obama today mourned the loss of life, saying it was a sign of the extraordinary sacrifices made by members of the military.

President Hamid Karzai sent his condolences to President Obama, according to a statement issued by his office.

Dangerous territory: The helicopter crashed in the Tangi Valley in the volatile Wardak province, which borders the Taliban stronghold province of Kabul

'A Nato helicopter crashed last night in Wardak province,' Karzai said in the statement, adding that 31 American special operations troops were killed.

'President Karzai expressed his deep condolences because of this incident and expressed his sympathy to Barack Obama.'

Mr Obama, who learned of the incident at Camp David, issued a statement saying his thoughts and prayers go out to the families of those who perished.

'Their deaths are a reminder of the extraordinary sacrifices made by the men and women of our military and their families, including all who have served in Afghanistan,' the president said.

'We will draw inspiration from their lives, and continue the work of securing our country and standing up for the values that they embodied.'

Mr Obama said he also mourned the loss of seven Afghans 'who died alongside our troops in pursuit of a more peaceful and hopeful future for their country.'

At the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says he is deeply saddened by the loss, and vowed that the U.S. will stay the course to complete the mission to make the world a safer place.

Vulnerable: Slow-moving transporter craft like the Chinook face massive risks in eastern Afghanistan

Nato confirmed the overnight crash and said there 'was enemy activity in the area.'

But it said it was still investigating the cause.

The alliance was conducting a recovery operation at the site, it said, without releasing details or a casualty figure.

'We are aware of an incident involving a helicopter in eastern Afghanistan,' said U.S. Air Force Capt. Justin Brockhoff, a NATO spokesman.

'We are in the process of accessing the facts.'

The helicopter was a twin-rotor Chinook, which are used for transport, said an official at NATO headquarters in Brussels, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the press, the Associated Press reports.

The helicopter crashed in the Sayd Abad district of Wardak province, said a provincial government spokesman, Shahidullah Shahid.

The volatile region borders the province of Kabul where the Afghan capital is located and is known for its strong Taliban presence.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in a statement that NATO had attacked a house in Sayd Abad where insurgents were gathering Friday night, killing eight fighters.

The Taliban then downed the helicopter, he said.

Elite: The Navy Seals are the special operations unit that killed Osama Bin Laden

THE FIVE DEADLIEST MILITARY
CRASHES IN AFGHANISTAN

Excluding the latest, and worst, crash, they are:

• ?June 28, 2005: U.S. helicopter is shot down in eastern Kunar province during a rescue operation, killing 16 special operations troops.

• ?April 6, 2005: U.S. Chinook helicopter crashes in a sandstorm near eastern Ghazni, killing 15 American troops and three civilian contractors.

• ?May 5, 2006: U.S. Chinook helicopter crashes while attempting a night landing on a small mountaintop in eastern Kunar province, killing 10 U.S. soldiers.

• September 21, 2010: U.S. Army Blackhawk crashes in southern Zabul province, killing nine troops on board, including four Navy Seals.

• ?February 18, 2007: U.S. Chinook carrying 22 U.S. soldiers crashes in southern Zabul province, killing eight and injuring 14.

In June 2005, 16 American troops were killed when a U.S. helicopter crashed in eastern Kunar province after apparently being hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.

Aircraft crashes are relatively frequent in Afghanistan, where insecurity and difficult terrain make air travel essential for coalition forces transporting troops and equipment.

There have been at least 17 coalition and Afghan aircraft crashes in Afghanistan this year.

Most of the crashes are attributed to pilot errors, weather conditions or mechanical failures. However, the coalition has confirmed that at least one CH-47F Chinook helicopter was hit by a rocket propelled grenade on July 25, injuring two crewmembers.

Meanwhile, NATO troops attacked a house and inadvertently killed eight members of a family, including women and children, in the southern Helmand province, an Afghan government official said Saturday.

NATO said Taliban fighters fired rocket propelled grenades and small arms at coalition troops during a patrol Friday in the Nad Ali district.

The troops fired back, and as the fight escalated an aistrike was called in against the Taliban position, said Brockhoff, the NATO spokesman.

He said NATO sent a delegation to meet with local leaders and investigate the incident.

Nad Ali district police chief Shadi Khan said civilians died in the bombardment but that it was unknown how many insurgents were killed.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said: 'The fresh reports from the site tells us that there are still Americans doing search operations for the bodies and pieces of the helicopter are on the ground.'

Gen. Abdul Qayum Baqizoy, police chief of Wardak, said the operation began around 1 a.m. Saturday as NATO and Afghan forces attacked a Taliban compound in Jaw-e-mekh Zareen village in the Tangi Valley.

The firefight lasted at least two hours, the general said.
'It was at the end of the operation that one of the NATO helicopters crashed,' he said.

'We don?t know yet the cause of the crash, and we don?t know how many NATO soldiers were on board.'Helmand, a Taliban stronghold, is the deadliest province in Afghanistan for international troops.'

NATO has come under harsh criticism in the past for accidentally killing civilians during operations against suspected insurgents.

However, civilian death tallies by the United Nations show the insurgency is responsible for most war casualties involving non-combatants.

Also in the south, NATO said two coalition service member were killed, one on Friday and another on Saturday. The international alliance did not release further details.

The deaths bring to 334 the number of coalition troops killed this year in Afghanistan, and 11 this month.

WHO ARE THE U.S. NAVY SEALS ...

U.S. Navy's Sea, Earth and Land Teams, (Seals) are the U.S. Navy's principal special operations force and a part of the Naval Special Warfare Command (NSWC) as well as the maritime component of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM).

The name is derived from their capacity to operate at sea, on Earth, and on land, but in the war on terror they have been almost exclusively for land-based operations, such as the storming of Osama bin Laden's compound.

The Seals were born in the Second World War when the Navy recognized the need for soldiers to take control of landing beaches, note obstacles and defences, and ultimately guide the landing forces in.?

The unit became known as officially as the Naval Combat Demolition Unit.

They became Seals in 1961 when President John F. Kennedy, aware of the situations in Southeast Asia, recognized the need for unconventional warfare and special operations as a measure against guerrilla warfare.

Units were established to operate from sea, Earth or land.

The first joint Seals and CIA operations, which are currently being carried in the war on terror, were executed in the Vietnam War.

Since then the Seals teams have operated in Grenada, the Persian Gulf and Panama.

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