Rescuers have located a helicopter that went missing in Russia’s far east with 22 people on board, officials said Sunday.
Russia’s emergencies ministry said the bodies of 17 people have been found and that rescuers were continuing to search for the remaining occupants. The helicopter, which was operated by Vityaz-Aero, was carrying tourists, Russian news agencies TASS and Interfax said.
All those on board are presumed to have died, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti said, citing the Emergencies Ministry, adding that the helicopter had likely crashed due to poor visibility in bad weather conditions.
“The wreckage of the previously missing helicopter was discovered from the air. It is located at an altitude of 900 meters (2,950 feet) near the place where it was last contacted,” the emergencies ministry wrote on Telegram.
The Mi-8 helicopter took off close to the Vachkazhets volcano in the Kamchatka region on Saturday but did not arrive at its destination as scheduled, Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency earlier said in a statement.
The agency said it believed that 19 passengers and three crew members were on board.
The Mi-8 is a two-engine helicopter designed in the 1960s. It is widely used in Russia, where crashes have been frequent, as well as in neighboring countries and many other nations.
Russian media describe Vityaz-Aero as one of the largest air carriers in the Kamchatka region. After a helicopter crash in 2021, in which eight people were killed, authorities banned the company from transporting passengers pending an investigation into a possible violation of flight safety rules.
Vityaz-Aero is the biggest of several local carriers which fly tourists to the Kronotsky reserve, a top tourist attraction that houses Russia’s only geyser basin.
Kamchatka, a pristine peninsula with numerous volcanoes, is known for its rugged beauty and rich wildlife.
Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
