Washington, Aug. 13 (SANA)TwoU.S.soldiers were killed when an AH-64 Apache attackhelicopter crashedin Texas, sparking a large brush fire near the crash site, authorities said.

The helicopter, assigned to Fort Hood, went down in an open field in Bell County about 100 kilometers north of the state capital Austin, Reuters reported Thursday, citing local authorities.

Multiple firefighting crews were sent to the scene to contain flames spreading from the wreckage to surrounding grassland.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott confirmed the deaths of the two service members in a post, while military authorities opened an investigation into the cause of the crash.

The accident follows a deadly military aviation collision in Washington, D.C., early last year, when aU.S. ArmyBlack Hawk helicopter collided with a commercial passenger jet near Reagan National Airport, killing 67 people.

Subsequent investigations identified technical failures and coordination errors in connection with the collision.