Peacekeepers killed in Black Hawk helicopter crash on Sinai Peninsula
A helicopter carrying eight international peacekeepers, including six American service members, one Frenchman and one Czech, crashed in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula on Nov. 12, 2020, killing all but one on board. Early reports indicate technical failure is a suspected cause of the crash.
The UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter belonged to the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO), an independent overseer of peace relations between Egypt and Israel, and crashed near Sharm el-Sheikh during a routine reconnaissance mission, according to news reports. One American survived the crash and was medically evacuated, the MFO said in a statement.
“The MFO will conduct an investigation to determine the cause of the accident,” the statement said. “At this point, there is no information to indicate the crash was anything except an accident.”
Motley Rice aviation attorneys have extensive experience fighting for victims of Black Hawk helicopter crashes through investigations and litigation, including for the family of an Army helicopter crew chief killed in August 2017 when his MH-60 Black Hawk crashed off the Yemen coast after engine failure. The case is against Lockheed Martin. Motley Rice also represents the family of a soldier killed when the U.S. Army-owned Sikorsky MH-60M Black Hawk helicopter he was co-piloting malfunctioned and crashed during a training flight at Hunter Army Airfield near Savannah, Ga., in 2014. Two others onboard, the helicopter’s pilot and a crew member, suffered serious injuries and are also represented by Motley Rice.
“The investigation into this tragic accident is still early, but if a technical failure is found to be at fault, it wouldn’t be the first time that military families lost their loved ones for such a preventable reason. The job that our service members sign up for is dangerous enough without the added risk of faulty machinery that’s supposed to keep them as safe as possible,” said Motley Rice aviation attorney Mary Schiavo, a former Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Transportation and CNN transportation analyst. “Given our work in similar cases, I, along with my colleague are very familiar with these helicopters and their mechanics.”
Motley Rice lawyers also represented the families of five Italian passengers who lost their lives in a mid-air collision over the Hudson River on Aug. 8, 2009. Through a thorough investigation and presentation of the facts of the case, we reached a private settlement for the families. Read more about this case.
Motley Rice lawyers also have extensive experience investigating international crashes and working with international contacts, including representing victims of plane and helicopter crashes in Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, Brazil, France, Philippines, Japan, Malaysia and Canada, and many other countries as well as of a bus crash in Egypt.
If you or someone you know has information about this crash, of if your loved one was involved, you may contact Motley Rice aviation attorney Mary Schiavo and Jim Brauchle, a former U.S. Air Force navigator, by email or call 1.800.768.4026.