Army Chief Warrant Officer Chris Allgaier, a native of Omaha, was among those killed Wednesday when a helicopter went down in Afghanistan. His father told us Friday that the 33-year-old pilot loved to fly.

Allgaier was among five U.S. soldiers killed in the crash of the transport helicopter. They were members of the 82nd Airborne Division.

Allgaier was an Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 and a graduate of Creighton Prep. The school had its flag at half-staff on Friday in his memory.

Chris Allgaier's father, Bob Allgaier said Friday, "I figured it was much safer there than in Iraq. They did most of their flying at night which was supposedly safer yet."

Major John Thomas, a spokesperson for NATO's International Security Assistance Force, says, "It was a hostile area where the helicopter went down and initial indications are that enemy fire may have brought down the helicopter."

Maj. Thomas says that 30 or more service members from the 82nd Airborne had been dropped off by the Chinook shortly before it went down late Wednesday. A Briton and a Canadian were killed along with the five Americans.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.

The Chinook crashed on the first day of a new joint NATO-Afghan operation to force Taliban fighters out of parts of Afghanistan's volatile Helmand Province, in the southern part of the country.

Bob Allgaier says, "He was doing what he thought was right. And it was his job."

Chris had been in Afghanistan since January and in the Army for 12 years.

He leaves behind his wife and three daughters: nine-year-old Natalie, eight-year-old Gina and three-year-old Joanna.

Bob Allgaier says, "The two older ones know their dad is dead. The baby, she doesn't know. Her mom told me last night and had her play phone out like she was talking to her daddy. It's possible at her age she will never know him."

Bob says part of his duty now will be to make sure his granddaughters don't forget their father.

"He'll always be a hero to me," Bob said.