THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, May 10, 1996 TAG: 9605100475
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A8 EDITION: FINAL
DATELINE: STRATFORD, CONN. LENGTH: Short : 30 lines
A military transport helicopter undergoing a flight check before it was to be added to the White House fleet crashed and burned Thursday at Sikorsky Aircraft, killing all four crew members.
Dozens of people working nearby and passing motorists watched in horror as the huge helicopter labored above the company's airfield, then dropped to the ground.
``It did a back flip, and then there was a thick, black cloud of smoke. It went down so fast,'' said John Nasufi, the owner of a restaurant across the street from the plant. The dead were Sikorsky employees.
The aircraft was to be assigned to a Marine unit at Quantico, Va., that provides support services for the White House, Sikorsky spokeswoman Gina McAllister said. The helicopter, however, would not have been used to carry the president.
The cause of the crash was not immediately known. No one on the ground was hurt.
KEYWORDS: FATALITIES ACCIDENT MILITARY ACCIDENT HELICOPTER by CNB