Lack of radio contact
cited in crash

WASHINGTON » Two Army helicopters that collided over Iraq's capital, killing two Hawaii-based pilots and injuring two others, lost sight of each other for nearly four minutes while maneuvering at night and failed to send radio warnings even after the lead helicopter circled and slowed dramatically, military investigators said.

Citing its accident investigation board, the Army said the lead scout helicopter in October's accident over southwestern Baghdad slowed and made an unexpected 360-degree right turn during the period when crews aboard both OH-58D Kiowa helicopters could not see each other.

The trailing helicopter, still flying roughly twice as fast, crashed 26 seconds later when its main rotor struck the other's tail, the Army said. Both wrecked helicopters fell into a farm field.

The crash on Oct. 16 killed two pilots based in Hawaii: Chief Warrant Officer William Brennan, 36, of Bethlehem, Conn., and Capt. Christopher Johnson, 29, of Excelsior Springs, Mo. Both were aboard the trailing helicopter, assigned to the 1st Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment at Wheeler Army Air Field. The pilots in the lead helicopter survived.