A CH-47 Chinook helicopter in a 2003 file photo. Five U.S. service members were killed when a military transport helicopter crashed during a routine flight west of Baghdad, the U.S. military said. REUTERS/Desmond Boylan

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Five U.S. service members were killed when a military transport helicopter crashed during a routine flight west of Baghdad, the U.S. military said.

The CH-47 Chinook helicopter crashed near the U.S. military’s al-Taqaddum air base close to Falluja, 50 km (30 miles) west of Baghdad.