A MERLIN helicopter from RAF Benson has been damaged after a hard landing during a training flight in the US.
Three members of the crew sustained minor injuries in the incident, which occurred during a night flying exercise at the El Centro Naval Air Facility, in California.
An inquiry into the incident on Monday is now under way.
The news came on the day the first Merlin helicopter from RAF Benson arrived in Afghanistan.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said the condition of the helicopter’s airframe was being assessed but the damage would not stop it from being deployed to Afghanistan in the next few weeks.
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