A U.S. Air Force helicopter was struck by gunfire from the ground while it was flying over northern Virginia, wounding one person on board and forcing an emergency landing, authorities said Wednesday.
The incident happened midday Monday when the UH-1N Huey helicopter, assigned to the 1st Helicopter Squadron, was on a “routine training mission,” according to an Air Force statement.
The helicopter was at an altitude of 1,000 feet and 10 miles northwest of Manassas Regional Airport near Middleburg, Virginia, when the shooting happened, the statement said. It made an emergency landing in Manassas at 12:43 p.m.
“Initial findings are that the helicopter was struck by a bullet resulting in a minor injury to an aircrew member and damage to the aircraft,” according to the Air Force.
The wounded crew member “sustained a non-threatening injury, for which he was treated and subsequently released from the hospital,” an FBI statement said.
FBI agents based out of Washington, D.C., and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations are asking for the public’s help in an investigation of the incident.
Pete Williams and Mosheh Gains contributed.