2 soldiers die as Apache helicopter crashes into Galveston Bay

An Apache helicopter went down in the water near the Bayport Cruise Terminal on Wednesday. An Apache helicopter went down in the water near the Bayport Cruise Terminal on Wednesday. Photo: James Nielsen, Chronicle Photo: James Nielsen, Chronicle Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close 2 soldiers die as Apache helicopter crashes into Galveston Bay 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

The Army has launched an investigation into what caused an AH-64 Apache helicopter to crash into a section of Galveston Bay near the Bayport terminal Wednesday, killing two Texas Army National Guard soldiers.

The helicopter, assigned to the 1-149 Attack Reconnaissance Battalion based at Ellington Field, went down shortly before 3 p.m., prompting an immediate search by state and local agencies, along with the U.S. Coast Guard.

Military officials later Wednesday did not identify the two soldiers who were aboard the helicopter, pending notification of their families.

The cause of the fatal crash will be the subject of the official inquiry by the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center at Fort Rucker, Ala.

Army officials said the flight was a "normal" training mission so the Texas Guard soldiers could maintain their flight proficiency.

"Our pilots are very competent and they are very well-trained," said Chief Warrant Officer 5 Glen Webb.

Pasadena firefighters were among the first at the scene of the crash.

Late Wednesday, officials said they were still working to recover the bodies of the two soldiers along with the submerged wreckage.

Although the downed Apache was quickly identified as a military helicopter, there was some initial confusion about where it had come from.

"We haven't had anybody who has claimed it," Pasadena Fire Marshal David Brannon said soon after the fatal crash.

An Army spokesman at Fort Hood initially said they had no reports of missing helicopters and a soldier who answered the telephone at Texas Guard headquarters in Austin was initially unaware of any mishaps involving one of their Apache gunships.

"We're just trying to sort it out," Brannon said.

Uniformed military officials eventually showed up at the scene of the recovery effort and identified the helicopter as being from the unit based at Ellington Field.

The AH-64 Apache is the Army's primary attack helicopter with its principal mission being the destruction of what military officials call "high value targets" with missiles, rockets or a 30 millimeter chain gun.

It has a tandem-seated crew cockpit with the pilot in the rear seat and the co-pilot/gunner located in front.

The 1-149th, part of the Texas Army National Guard's 36th Combat Aviation Brigade, has experienced combat with deployments in recent years to both Iraq and Afghanistan.