Father of Minnesota soldier killed in helicopter crash survived "Green Ramp disaster" in 1994
MINNEAPOLIS — The father of a Minnesota soldier who was among five U.S. soldiers killed in an overseas helicopter crash tells WCCO he survived the 1994 "Green Ramp disaster" that killed 24 U.S. service members.
On Monday, the Department of Defense confirmed the identities of the five soldiers during military aircraft training over the Mediterranean Sea.
The DOD says the soldiers were in an MH-60 Blackhawk conducting aerial refueling training Friday when the helicopter "experienced an in-flight emergency" that resulted in the crash. The DOD says there are no indications that the crash was caused by enemy or hostile actions.
Among the dead was 24-year-old Sgt. Cade Wolfe of Mankato, Minnesota. He graduated from Mankato East High School in 2018 and was well-loved in the community.
WCCO's Esme Murphy spoke Monday with Cade's father, Scott Wolfe. He told Murphy that he is devastated and called his son a true American hero.
In a tragic coincidence, Scott Wolfe confirmed to WCCO that he had previously survived the Green Ramp disaster at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. On March 23, 1994, two military aircraft were attempting to land at the base when they collided. The resulting ground collision killed 24 service members and injured over a hundred more.
The incident is considered the worst peacetime loss of life suffered by the 82nd Airborne Division since World War II.
