In Texas, a National Guard member from New York was seriously hurt in a helicopter crash near the U.S.-Mexico border. The names of the two National Guard soldiers and a Border Patrol agent who died were released.
The three people who died in the crash near Rio Grande City on Friday were: Chief Warrant Officer 2 Casey Frankoski, 28, and Chief Warrant Officer 2 John Grassia, 30, both with the New York National Guard; and Border Patrol Agent Chris Luna, 49. The cause of the crash is still being investigated.
The UH-72 Lakota helicopter was involved in the federal government’s border security mission when it crashed, according to a statement from Joint Task Force North, a military unit that supports Customs and Border Protection.
The injured soldier, the aircraft crew chief from the New York National Guard, is still in the hospital, according to a release from the New York State Division of Military & Naval Affairs.
Major General Ray Shields, the adjutant general of New York, expressed shock and devastation by the deaths of Frankoski and Grassia, and hope for the speedy recovery of the injured crew chief.
U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Commissioner Troy Miller expressed sorrow over the death of Luna, who leaves behind a wife, two children, parents, and a brother.
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas expressed hope for the injured national guardsman’s quick recovery, and extended deepest condolences to the families of those killed.
Grassia, who was a New York state trooper, was from Schenectady, New York, and he enlisted in the New York Army National Guard in 2013 as a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter maintenance specialist, according to the New York State Division of Military & Naval Affairs. The release said that Frankoski, of Rensselaer, New York, enlisted in the New York Army National Guard in 2016 and she trained to become a UH-60 Black Hawk and UH-72 Lakota helicopter pilot.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul expressed deep sorrow for the deaths of Grassia and Frankoski, stating that service and defense of the country is a noble calling.
Frankoski and Grassia were assigned to Detachment 2, Company A, 1st Battalion, 244th Aviation Regiment.. Luna was assigned to the Border Patrol’s Rio Grande City Station.
The helicopter that crashed was assigned to the District of Columbia Army National Guard, according to the New York State Division of Military & Naval Affairs release.
The border region is heavily patrolled by both state and federal authorities, including routine aerial surveillance.
In January, a Texas Department of Public Safety helicopter patrolling the state’s border with Mexico lost power and crashed, officials said at the time. The co-pilot suffered a minor hand injury and the helicopter was significantly damaged. That helicopter was flying as part of Operation Lone Star, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s nearly $10 billion border mission that has tested the federal government’s authority over immigration.
In LA GRULLA, Texas, a soldier from New York who is part of the National Guard got badly hurt in a helicopter crash over the U.S.-Mexico border. The soldier is still in the hospital on Sunday. Meanwhile, the names of the two National Guard soldiers and a Border Patrol agent who died in the crash have been made public by the authorities.
