PICTURED: National Guard names three service members killed after their helicopter crashed during a training mission in New York
Chief Warrant Officer Steven Skoda, 54; Chief Warrant Officer Christian Koch, 39; and Chief Warrant Officer Daniel Prial, 30, died on Wednesday
They were killed after their UH-60 Black Hawk medical evacuation helicopter crashed into a field in upstate New York during a training exercise
There were no survivors in the crash
All three were experienced pilots with past deployments to Afghanistan and had won a litany of honors between them
Witnesses who called 911 reported hearing the sounds of an engine sputtering and said the aircraft was flying very low
3 NY Guardsmen killed in helicopter crash were experienced pilots
By Staff and Wire Reports
Published article
Chief Warrant Officer 5 Steven Skoda, 54, of Rochester, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Daniel Prial, 30 of Rochester, and Chief Warrant Officer 4 Christian Koch, 39, of Honeoye Falls. (NY National Guard)
NEW YORK - The three National Guard members killed when a helicopter crashed in an upstate New York field this week were experienced pilots with past deployments to Afghanistan, officials said Friday.
Killed in the crash were Chief Warrant Officer 5 Steven Skoda, 54, of Rochester, Chief Warrant Officer 4 Christian Koch, 39, of Honeoye Falls, and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Daniel Prial, 30 of Rochester, according to the National Guard.
After 9/11, Daniel Prial chose his path: He wanted to go into the military.
“It was a tough day for him,” recalls his father, Greg Prial. Greg Prial was working that day as a lieutenant with the FDNY, and his family hadn’t heard from him. The experience marked Danny, and lit a fire.
“It kind of set him on a path,” his father said.
That path, filled with hard work, led to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and a career as a Black Hawk helicopter pilot for the U.S. Army.
“His dream was to fly,” Greg Prial said, “and he got that.”
Three-man crew lost in Guard helicopter crash were experienced pilots The Associated Press January 22 Three National Guardsmen were killed when their helicopter crashed in Mendon, NY, Jan. 20, 2021. They are, from left: Chief Warrant Officer 5 Steven Skoda, 54; Chief Warrant Officer 4 Christian Koch, 39 and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Daniel Prial, 30. (New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs via AP) MENDON, N.Y. The three National Guard members killed when a helicopter crashed in an upstate New York field this week were experienced pilots with past deployments to Afghanistan, officials said Friday. Killed in the crash were New York residents Chief Warrant Officer 5 Steven Skoda, 54, of Rochester, Chief Warrant Officer 4 Christian Koch, 39, of Honeoye Falls, and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Daniel Prial, 30 of Rochester, according to the National Guard.
MENDON, N.Y. (AP) The three National Guard members killed when a helicopter crashed in an upstate New York field this week were experienced pilots with past deployments to Afghanistan, officials said Friday.
Killed in the crash were Chief Warrant Officer 5 Steven Skoda, 54, of Rochester, Chief Warrant Officer 4 Christian Koch, 39, of Honeoye Falls, and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Daniel Prial, 30 of Rochester, according to the National Guard.
The UH-60 Black Hawk medical evacuation helicopter crashed in a farmer’s field near Mendon, south of Rochester, around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. There were no survivors.
The crew had been conducting night vision goggle proficiency training in the local training area, the National Guard said. The helicopter was based at the Army Aviation Support Facility at Rochester International Airport.