Updated

Updated · Fox News · Aug 14

Fort Hood Identifies 2 Pilots Killed in Apache Crash, Sparking Wildfire Near Salado

Updated

Updated · Fox News · Aug 14

Fort Hood Identifies 2 Pilots Killed in Apache Crash, Sparking Wildfire Near Salado

Q: What critical failure turned a routine Apache helicopter training flight in Texas into a fatal crash and a massive 155-acre wildfire?

The critical failure has not been publicly identified. Army officials say the AH-64E Apache “experienced a mishap” during a routine training or maintenance test flight near Salado, but the specific mechanical, operational, or human failure that caused the crash remains under investigation. What is known is that the helicopter went down around 1:40 p.m. in a grassy field south of Fort Hood, killing Chief Warrant Officer 2 Deontre T. Huey and Warrant Officer Seth L. Olmstead. The impact ignited what became the Dove Hollow Fire, which burned about 155 acres in hot, dry, windy conditions before crews contained it. The Army has sent a safety investigation team from the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center at Fort Rucker, Alabama, to determine what went wrong. Until that inquiry is complete, any claim about a specific critical failure would be speculative. So the direct answer is that no confirmed failure has yet been released; the only established facts are that the Apache suffered an in-flight mishap, crashed violently into a field, and the wreck sparked the large wildfire.

Q: How did a standard military test flight suddenly plummet near a residential zone, sparking evacuations and a major environmental hazard?

It is not yet known why the Apache went down; the Army says the cause remains under investigation. What is established is that the AH-64E Apache from Fort Hood crashed around 1:35 to 1:40 p.m. near Dove Hollow Lane and FM 2843 south of Salado during what officials described as a routine training or maintenance test flight. The aircraft hit a field in a violent impact, killing both pilots, Chief Warrant Officer 2 Deontre T. Huey and Warrant Officer Seth L. Olmstead. The crash site was close enough to homes and outbuildings to trigger evacuations after the impact ignited a fast-moving grass fire. Bell County authorities and Texas A&M Forest Service said the blaze burned about 155 acres. Five homes and nine outbuildings were threatened; all five homes and eight of the nine outbuildings were saved. No injuries on the ground were reported. The environmental hazard grew quickly because of dry grass, extreme heat, low humidity and strong winds, which helped the fire spread and forced a large emergency response. More than 200 firefighters from 22 agencies and about 100 law enforcement personnel from nine agencies responded, along with military crews. Investigators from the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center at Fort Rucker, Alabama, arrived the next day to lead the safety inquiry. Until that investigation is complete, there is no confirmed public explanation for why a standard test flight suddenly plummeted.

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Aug 14

Fort Hood named Chief Warrant Officer 2 Deontre T. Huey, 34, and Warrant Officer Seth L. Olmstead, 25, as the two soldiers killed in Wednesday’s AH-64E Apache training crash near Salado, Texas.
The helicopter went down in a field about 30 minutes from Fort Hood, igniting a wildfire that triggered evacuations and a large emergency response.
Huey, from Killeen, entered the Army in 2014 and joined the unit in 2022; Olmstead, a Belton native, entered as a warrant officer candidate in 2023 and was assigned there in 2025.
A U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center safety team arrived Aug. 13 from Fort Rucker, Alabama, and is leading the investigation into the crash.
Lt. Gen. Kevin D. Admiral said Fort Hood’s priority is supporting the families and soldiers affected as the Army examines the fatal training mishap.