Two members of the Israeli air force were killed Sunday night during a helicopter rescue exercise in southern Israel.
A preliminary finding by a committee of investigation found that a hoist attached to the outside of the craft’s fuselage had suffered a “technical malfunction” that caused the cable on which the men were suspended to snap.
The two men plunged to their deaths. One of the dead men was identified as Cpl. Assaf Rosenberg, 19, of Petah Tikva. He was buried in his hometown Monday afternoon.
The name of the second casualty had not yet been released for publication, but his family was notified.
The air force investigating panel was appointed by the air force commander, Maj. Gen. Herzl Budinger.
In addition, the Israel Defense Force chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Ehud Barak, ordered reserve Brig. Gen. Giora Zorea to undertake an external investigation that could provide any implications this could have for similar exercises in other IDF branches.
Zorea has been ordered to report back within 10 days, during which time all high-risk training exercises are to be halted throughout the IDF.
The unit in which the helicopter was involved is part of an elite group of volunteers that spends much of its time in training that involves the rescue of both military personnel and civilians, on the ground or at sea.
The unit’s pilots and crew are trained to operate in all weather conditions and on all terrains or on the sea.
The unit also operates behind enemy lines, frequently under fire, to rescue downed pilots.
In many instances in which the helicopter cannot land, rescuers and paramedics are lowered to the ground by a cable attached to a winch or crane, which lifts them either alone or with the people rescued, sometimes strapped to stretchers.
A member of the same unit was killed a month ago and five other soldiers wounded in the crash of a rescue helicopter returning from a stand-by operation during an air raid on terrorist bases in Lebanon.
Over 500 people, both soldiers and civilians, have been rescued by the unit helicopters in the past two years. Many of the civilians were hikers who fell down steep cliffs during hiking or mountain-climbing trips.
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