Storms damage multiple helicopters at Fort Carson

The damages are still being assessed
No injuries were reported
Military aircraft are often stored outside

Updated: Aug 5, 2024 / 01:29 PM CDT

In this photo released by the U.S. Army, AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopters from the 1st Attack Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment, fly over a mountain range near Fort Wainwright, Alaska, on June 3, 2019. The U.S. Army says two Army helicopters similar to the ones in this picture crashed Thursday, April 27, 2023, near Healy, Alaska, killing three soldiers and injuring a fourth. The helicopters were returning from a training flight to Fort Wainwright, based near Fairbanks. (Cameron Roxberry/U.S. Army via AP)

(NewsNation) — Multiple helicopters with the 4th Combat Aviation Brigade were damaged after heavy weather tore through the area around Fort Carson.

On Aug. 2, the 4th Infantry Division, which the 4th Combat Aviation Brigade is a part of, announced that storms had hit the Butts Army Heliport, causing damage to multiple U.S. Army helicopters, including Chinooks, Black Hawks and Apaches. Photos posted to X show the helicopters were knocked on their sides

The infantry division said in a news release it was still assessing the extent of the damage, but no one was injured.

According to the Naval Helicopter Association, many military aircraft are stored outside when not in use, often because they are expected to provide air support at a moment’s notice.

Col. Nicholas Ploetz, commander of the 4th Combat Aviation Brigade, said that the weather event had a “significant” effect on the fleet.

“Our Soldiers are resilient and will do what is necessary to recover our equipment and continue to perform our mission,” Ploetz said in a statement.