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In Malaysia, two military helicopters collided, killing ten people
“The two helicopters collided during flight training,” said Suhaimy Mohamad Suhail, senior operations commander from the fire and rescue department, adding that all 10 crew members on board were confirmed dead by medical officers.
Tuesday during a training session, two Malaysian military helicopters collided and crashed, killing all ten crew members, according to the nation’s rescue agency.
Online footage shows multiple helicopters flying in formation at low altitude over the Lumut naval facility, which is situated approximately 160 kilometres (100 miles) away from Kuala Lumpur, the country’s capital.
A flypast practice was being conducted by the helicopters in advance of the May Naval Day ceremonies.
“The two helicopters collided during flight training,” said Suhaimy Mohamad Suhail, senior operations commander from the fire and rescue department, adding that all 10 crew members on board were confirmed dead by medical officers.
According to the rescue organisation, there were two aircraft involved: an AgustaWestland AW139 and a Eurocopter AS555SN Fennec.
Images from the naval base stadium track showed the highly damaged Eurocopter model, assorted debris, and rescue workers surrounding it.
The AgustaWestland helicopter crashed at the naval base’s swimming pool area.
– ‘National heroes’ –
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim sent his condolences to the families of the victims, saying “the nation mourns the heart-wrenching and soul-wrenching tragedy”.
“I was informed that an immediate investigation will be carried out by the Ministry of Defense, especially TLDM (Royal Malaysian Navy), to find the cause of the crash,” he said.
Malaysia’s King Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar also shared condolences.
“Queen Zarith and I feel very sad over the loss of national heroes in this tragedy,” he said in a social media post.
Helicopter crashes are not uncommon in the Southeast Asian nation.
Last month, all four people onboard a Malaysian coast guard helicopter were rescued after it crashed in the Strait of Malacca.
The helicopter was on a training flight when it plunged into the waterway, a narrow shipping lane which runs between Malaysia and the Indonesian island of Sumatra.
Two people were killed in 2020 when a pair of helicopters from the same Malaysian pilot school collided during a training flight, according to authorities.
In 2016, a deputy minister was among those who died after a Eurocopter AS350 crashed in the Malaysian state of Sarawak.
