The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of two soldiers supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

     Chief Warrant Officer (CW2) Michael T. Blaise, 29, from Tenn. and Chief Warrant Officer (CW2) Brian D. Hazelgrove, 29, of Fort Rucker, Ala., were killed Jan 23 when their OH-58 Kiowa Warrior helicopter crashed on its way back from a combat mission near Mosul in northern Iraq.

     Blaise was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 101st Aviation Brigade based at Fort Campbell, Ky.  Hazelgrove was assigned to 3rd  Battalion, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 10th Aviation  Brigade, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) based at Fort Drum, N.Y.

     The incident is under investigation.