United States Marine Corps CH-53E Destroyed

A CH-53E Super Stallion of Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 466, Marine Aircraft Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, caught fire in flight during a training mission and made an emergency landing at Camp Pendleton, California, beside Interstate 5, at about 16:11 local time. The four crew members evacuated safely and were unhurt, a 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing spokesperson said, but they were unable to put out the blaze, which engulfed the helicopter, bureau number 162518, before Marine Corps and local fire crews extinguished it. The Marine Corps classified the event as a mishap and assigned a board to investigate; the cause of the fire was not immediately known.