Wasilla native among dead in Washington helicopter crash

WASILLA — The Mat-Su Valley’s CWO3, Chief Warrant Officer Shan Joseph Satterfield was one of four Army aviators who perished when two helicopters crashed during training at Joint Base Lewis-McChord on Monday.

The son of Gary and Cynthia Satterfield, Satterfield, 32, has been on active duty since September 1997 and stationed at the Washington base since December 2009. He also served on assignments to Korea and at Fort Campbell, Ky., and was deployed once each to Iraq and Afghanistan, according to the Army.

During his military service, he received two Air Medals, two Army Commendation Medals and the Aviator Badge.

A friend of the family said Satterfield’s parents had traveled from Wasilla to Washington to spend the holidays with their son and his family when the news of his death arrived.

A team of investigators from Fort Rucker, Ala., began Wednesday to investigate the cause of the crash.

This is a developing news story.