Fatal crash claims 5 civilians in Iraq

[Ron Burgundy]

AP - Five civilians died Tuesday in the Baghdad crash of a helicopter owned by the private security company Blackwater USA, according to a U.S. military official.

The cause of the crash was not known, and the identities of the five civilians have not been released, said the official, who asked anonymity because the details had not been made public. Blackwater representatives responded to the scene of the crash in central Baghdad, along with U.S. military.

According to a second U.S. military official, initial reports suggested that all five were on the helicopter and not casualties on the ground. The official, who also requested anonymity, said that according to the early reports, there was no indication that the Blackwater helicopter was shot down.

The first official also said it was too early to tell if this incident was connected to the crash Saturday of a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter that killed a dozen U.S. troops. Officials have gathered evidence that Saturday's Black Hawk helicopter was shot down.

In Baghdad, a senior Iraqi defense official said the private helicopter that crashed Tuesday was shot down.

source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070123/ap_on_go_ot/us_iraq_aircraft [link]