Apache crews who buzzed Kid Rock’s home won’t be punished, Hegseth says
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Tuesday that the crews of two Apache helicopters are no longer suspended and won’t be punished for flying by Kid Rock’s home.
Hours after the Army announced it had grounded two crews of Apache helicopters that buzzed the home of singer Kid Rock over the weekend, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Tuesday that the helicopter crews are no longer suspended and won’t be punished.
Hegseth made the announcement on social media by responding to a video that Kid Rock had shared on X showing one of the helicopters hovering very close to his hilltop estate in White Creek, Tennessee that he calls “the Southern White House.”
The defense secretary wrote in X that the helicopter crews’ suspension had been lifted, adding: “No punishment. No investigation. Carry on, patriots.”
Prior to Hegseth’s announcement, Kid Rock had told a local news station that he didn’t think the crews would get in much trouble. The singer is a vocal supporter of President Donald Trump, and has been a regular White House guest.
“I think they’re going to be alright,” he told WKRN. “My buddy is the commander in chief.”
The Apache flight crews are assigned to the 101st Airborne Division, which is based at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, which is about 50 miles from Kid Rock’s home in Tennessee and 60 miles from Nashville.
Army spokesperson Maj. Montrell Russell told Task & Purpose earlier on Tuesday that the crews had been grounded and a formal review of the fly-by, known broadly in the Army as a “15-6” investigation, had been launched.
“The Army has confirmed that on March 28, two Apache helicopters from the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade at Fort Campbell conducted a flight in the Nashville area that has attracted public and media attention,” said Army spokesperson Maj. Montrell Russell. “The personnel involved have been suspended from flight duties while the Army reviews the circumstances surrounding the mission, including compliance with relevant FAA regulations, aviation safety protocol, and approval requirements.”
Russell said officials had launched an “Army Regulation 15-6 administrative investigation” of the fly-by, the second-most serious of three levels of 15-6 investigations. Administrative investigations can cover a wide-range of incidents, mishaps, or alleged misconduct across the Army, usually under a single investigating officer. The investigator is charged with producing “a comprehensive examination of the facts and circumstances relevant to the matters or conduct under investigation, and to provide recommendations, as may be required.”
“The Army takes any allegations of unauthorized or unsafe flight operations very seriously and is committed to enforcing standards and holding personnel accountable,” Russell said in an email.
On Saturday, Kid Rock posted a longer video on Instagram that showed the two helicopters hovering and flying very close to his home. He told WKRN he’d previously invited crews to fly by his house.
“I’ve talked to some of these pilots, and I told them, ‘You guys see me waving when you come by the house, you guys are always welcome to cruise by my house like any time,” he told the station.
WTVF, a Nashville television station, reported that Apache helicopters may also have flown over a “No Kings” protest on Saturday in the city.
Maj. Jonathon Bless, a spokesman for the 101st Airborne Division, confirmed the Apaches were flying near Nashville, but not if they were spotted over the parade.
“Our helicopters were flying a route in the Nashville vicinity for training purposes. Any association with the No Kings Rally also happening in Nashville that day is entirely coincidental,” Bless told Task & Purpose on Monday.
