Nine killed in helicopter crash

2 Jul, 2008 05:32 / Updated 16 years ago

At least nine people have died in a helicopter crash in Russia’s north-east. The MI-8 helicopter incident took place in the Yamalo-Nenetsky region. The Russian Emergencies Ministry says 16 people were on board, 13 of them oil workers.

According to Russian news agencies, the helicopter, belonging to the Utair company, crashed while landing. The helicopter was transporting passengers to the Varginsky oil field. Contact with the aircraft was lost five minutes before the crash. Two rescue teams have already reached the wreckage site.