AN inquiry report into the deaths of two Australian Commandos in a US chopper crash in Afghanistan in 2012 has been censored by Defence brass and the Rudd Government.

According to Defence, the report finds that pilot error and poor visibility were the key factors in the crash that claimed Sydney based soldiers Lance Corporal (LCPL) Mervyn McDonald, 30, from WA and Private (PTE) Nathanael Galagher, 23, from NSW of 2 Commando Regiment.

The men died when an American Blackhawk helicopter crashed in Helmand Province during a targeted mission with Afghan Security Forces on August 30, 2012.

A brief press release issued by Defence said the pilots of the chopper "lost situational awareness'' and collided with the ground.

"The Minister for Defence considered advice from the Chief of the Defence Force, the wishes of the families, and the public interest in the release of the Report and has decided not to release the Australian Inquiry Officer report,'' Defence said.

Despite the high level of public interest in the war, the huge cost to Australian taxpayers and the massive burden on thousands of families, Defence Chief General David Hurley advised the outgoing Defence Minister Stephen Smith to not release the report.

Two other inquiries were also conducted but all the material has been censored by the International Security Force and the Rudd Government and the Australian Defence Force (ADF).

"The crash was the result of flight errors combined with environmental conditions,'' Defence said.

"There was no evidence that mechanical failure or enemy action contributed to the incident.''

The Defence inquiry led to six recommendations, five of which relate to operational matters but none that were found to have caused the August 30 crash.

All recommendations have been implemented.

Defence said the families of Cpl McDonald and Pte Galagher have been informed of the inquiry findings and further details would not be made public.

"The decision whether to release an Inquiry Officer report is made on a case-by-case basis in consultation with the families,'' it said.

"In this instance, the Chief of the Defence Force's primary consideration when providing advice to the Government was to respect the wishes of the families of Lance Corporal McDonald and Private Galagher.''

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