KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - The Canadian Forces has confirmed that a Chinook helicopter that was forced to make an emergency landing Thursday was brought down by small arms fire.
The helicopter made a hard landing and immediately burst into flames 20 km southwest of Kandahar city.
Eight of the 21 people aboard the Canadian CH-147 Chinook suffered minor injuries.
Brig.-Gen. Jonathan Vance, the commander of Task Force Kandahar, said small arms fire struck the aircraft, igniting a fire that forced the aircraft to land and eventually destroyed it.
Canada now has five Chinook helicopters remaining in its Afghanistan fleet.
