VALDOSTA, GA – Two of the four airmen killed in Tuesday’s Pave Hawk crash in England were formerly stationed at Moody Air Force Base.

On Tuesday, a Pave Hawk helicopter, similar to a Black Hawk, crashed in a wildlife preserve near the town of Norfolk, on the eastern coast of England. Capt. Sean M. Ruane was stationed at Moody for almost four years from October 2007 to August 2011, and Capt. Christopher S. Stover was stationed at Moody from July 2010 to August 2013. After leaving Moody both men joined the 48th Fighter Wing at Royal Air Force Station in Lakenheath, England.

The Pave Hawk, assigned to the 56th Rescue Squadron, was flying a low-level training mission when it went down at the Norfolk Wildlife Trust Cley Marshes near the town of Cley Next The Sea. Tech Sgt. Dale E. Mathews and Staff Sgt. Afton M. Ponce were also in the Pave Hawk with Ruane and Stover.

48th Fighter Wing Commander, Col. Kyle Robinson, expressed his condolences to the family in a press release from the RAF Lakenheath.

“We continue to think of the loved ones who are experiencing such a tragic, sudden loss,” said Col. Kyle Robinson, “The Liberty Wing feels as though it has lost members of its family, and we stand by to support one another and these airmen’s families during this difficult time.”

Residents near the crash said the Pave Hawk sounded unusual before the tragic accident. They were also experiencing poor weather in the area, with wind gust over 30 mph.

Source: Air Force Times