Army Revises Copter Toll to 15
WASHINGTON — The Army said Tuesday that 15 U.S. troops were killed in Sunday’s downing of a Chinook helicopter by insurgents in Iraq, revising the death toll reported earlier by the Pentagon.
“We can confirm there were 15 killed,†said Maj. Steve Stover, an Army spokesman. The Pentagon and the U.S. military’s Central Command in Tampa, Fla., incorrectly put the death toll at 16 on Monday, the Army said.
The military said Monday that 20 troops were injured in the incident, but Stover said 27 were hurt -- 25 aboard the helicopter shot down by a shoulder-fired missile and two aboard another helicopter that landed nearby in a rescue effort.
The identities of 12 of those killed had been released by Monday. On Tuesday, the last three victims were identified by the Pentagon as:
* Staff Sgt. Daniel A. Bader, 28, of Colorado Springs, Colo. He was assigned to the Air Defense Artillery Battery, 1st Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, based at Ft. Carson, Colo.
* Spc. Brian H. Penisten, 28, of Fort Wayne, Ind. He was assigned to the same unit as Bader.
* Chief Warrant Officer Bruce A. Smith, 41, of West Liberty, Iowa. Smith was assigned to Detachment 1, Company F, 106th Aviation Battalion, Army National Guard, based in Davenport, Iowa.
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