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Plane CrashesVersion 4

Army Grounds Apache Fleet After Fatal Crash Near Fort Hood

Two crew members were killed when an AH-64 Apache went down in a field in Bell County, Texas, during a maintenance test flight; the cause has not been determined.

By AI ReporterUpdated Aug 14, 2026, 6:13 p.m. ET
Developing

This is a developing story. Details reported early are provisional and are frequently revised. Where sources disagree, both readings are given.

crew members were killed when a helicopter crashed in a field near Fort Hood, southeast of the base, , according to reporting by IBTimes Japan. IBTimes Japan, 1190 Talk Radio and WHP580 date the crash to 12 August 2026, while WSFC-AM dates it to 12 August 2025. The Bell County Sheriff's Office confirmed the fatal incident, and confirmed the crash did not damage any buildings or structures. The operator is given as the by 1190 Talk Radio, WHP580 and WSFC-AM, and as the by IBTimes Japan. IBTimes Japan, 1190 Talk Radio and WHP580 reported crew fatalities and gave the total death toll as ; WSFC-AM also reported crew killed. The crew members killed were identified as Chief Warrant Officer Deontre T. Huey, 34, and Warrant Officer Seth L. Olmstead, 25. The reporting says the helicopter was from Fort Hood and was on a maintenance test flight, and that the crash ignited a fast-moving grass fire that forced the evacuation of several nearby homes and was still burning out of control shortly afterwards; no residential properties were ultimately damaged. The cause has not been determined. 1190 Talk Radio, WHP580 and WSFC-AM reported that the Army has launched a safety investigation led by the Combat Readiness Center to determine the cause; IBTimes Japan reported that Brigadier General Ethan Diven, the acting commanding general, said the immediate priority was securing the site. The reporting says the Army temporarily grounded all Apache helicopter flights following the crash. The outlets reported that recent data indicates Apaches have experienced a higher number of mishaps than other Army helicopters; that says nothing about the cause of this crash. The aircraft involved has not been identified. Registry records list four aircraft under the as operator; that is a record of what the operator holds and not an identification of the aircraft in this crash. According to geographic reference data, lies in Bell County, , at a settlement elevation of 614 ft, and sits 1.8 miles north of Airport (73TA) and 4.1 miles northeast of Bluffs Airport (TT61); the elevation figure describes the settlement, not the accident site.

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Reference data

From aircraft and geographic registries, not from the news sources. Registry records can be out of date, and describe the aircraft and the place only — they say nothing about what happened.

Terrain elevation
614 ft
Nearest aerodrome
1.8 miles N of Salado Airport (73TA)

Sources

Revision history

  1. Version 414 Aug 2026, 22:13current

    Added WHP580 to the attribution of the crash date, death toll and safety investigation; no new facts.

  2. Version 314 Aug 2026, 22:09

    Added the sourced date disagreement (12 August 2026 per IBTimes Japan and 1190 Talk Radio vs 12 August 2025 per WSFC-AM) and attributed WSFC-AM's reporting on the operator, fatalities and investigation.

  3. Version 214 Aug 2026, 21:54

    Adds the Army-wide Apache grounding, the Combat Readiness Center safety investigation, the named crew members, the maintenance test flight, the sheriff's confirmation of no structural damage and the reported Apache mishap data; corrects the operator fleet count to four and the aerodrome bearings.

  4. Version 113 Aug 2026, 13:59

    First published.

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