Crew killed as Russian military Mi-8 helicopter crash lands in Moscow region

A Russian Air Force Mi-8 training helicopter has crash landed north-west of Moscow. The helicopter crew succumbed to their injuries, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

The chopper crashed some 20 kilometers away from the town of Klin located to the north-west of the Russian capital. The aircraft fell in a deserted area, the military said, adding that the incident resulted in no casualties on the ground. 

The helicopter crew, which consisted of flight instructors and a group of trainees, suffered serious injuries and none of them survived, the ministry confirmed.

The helicopter was performing a regular training flight when the incident happened. The exact reasons of the crash are unknown but preliminary data suggests that it might have been caused by a technical malfunction.

A special investigative group of the Air Force major command has been dispatched to the crash site.

Developed in the Soviet Union in the mid-1960s, Mi-8 military transport and multipurpose helicopters are considered among the most reliable and massively produced choppers in the world. The aircraft are still manufactured in Russia and are actively used in more than 50 countries.

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