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Two Marine Corps pilots killed in Arizona helicopter crash

Pilots with Marine Light Attack Helicopter Training Squadron 303, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing maneuver a AH-1Z Viper belonging to the squadron during training aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif. Dec. 19, 2008. (Lance Cpl. Christopher O'Quin/U.S. Marine Corps)

Two pilots with the Marine Corps were killed Saturday night in a helicopter crash, the Marine Corps Air Station announced.

The pilots, who have not yet been identified, were conducting a routine training mission with an AH-1Z Viper in Yuma, Arizona around 8:45 PT Saturday.

A spokesman at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma confirmed to the Daily News that both pilots were aboard the helicopter during what he called a “single aircraft mishap.”

The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

The mission was part of the Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) course, a seven-week training event that “emphasizes operational integration of the six functions of Marine Corps aviation in support of a Marine Air Ground Task Force” and “provides standardized advanced tactical training certification of unit instructor qualifications to support Marine aviation training and readiness, and assist in developing and employing aviation weapons and tactics,” according to the Marines.

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