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2 Tennessee Guard pilots killed in a Black Hawk helicopter crash are identified

Danny Randolph (left) and Daniel Wadham, chief warrant officers in the Tennessee National Guard, were killed in a Black Hawk helicopter crash during a training flight in Alabama's Madison County on Wednesday.
Tennessee National Guard
Danny Randolph (left) and Daniel Wadham, chief warrant officers in the Tennessee National Guard, were killed in a Black Hawk helicopter crash during a training flight in Alabama's Madison County on Wednesday.

Updated February 17, 2023 at 12:30 PM ET

The Tennessee National Guard named the two pilots who died in a Black Hawk helicopter crash in Madison County, Ala., near the Tennessee state line, on Wednesday.

Daniel Wadham, 39, and Danny Randolph, 40, were killed during a training flight in which their helicopter "rapidly descended and impacted the ground," the Tennessee National Guard said in a statement Thursday. Both of them held the rank Chief Warrant Officer 3 and had served for 15 and 13 years, respectively.

They were approaching the Huntsville Executive Airport when the helicopter crashed near Alabama Highway 53 and Burwell Road, the Guard said. The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

"Words cannot express my sorrow for the loss of these two Tennessee National Guardsmen," said Brigadier Gen. Warner Ross, Tennessee's adjutant general.

No other service members or civilians were harmed, authorities say. They were the only people on board.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said he and his wife are "saddened by the tragic loss of two Tennessee National Guard members. Please join us in lifting their families up in prayer & support during this time of unspeakable grief."

The Madison County Sheriff's office said debris could be scattered across the area near the crash site and asked that people don't touch or try to move it.

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Kaitlyn Radde
Kaitlyn Radde is an intern for the Graphics and Digital News desks, where she has covered everything from the midterm elections to child labor. Before coming to NPR, she covered education data at Chalkbeat and contributed data analysis to USA TODAY coverage of Black political representation and NCAA finances. She is a graduate of Indiana University.