The Mi-8T helicopter took off from a base near the Vachkazhets volcano and failed to communicate with the crew at the scheduled time
A Russian helicopter with three crew members and 19 passengers has gone missing in the eastern Kamchatka Peninsula, the Interfax news agency reported on Saturday, citing preliminary data from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The Mi-8T helicopter took off from a base near the Vachkazhets volcano and communication with the crew failed at the scheduled time of 04:00 GMT.
According to Interfax, rescuers from the Russian Emergencies Ministry are participating in the search to find the helicopter.
Low visibility, drizzle and fog were the prevailing weather conditions in the Kamchatka region where the helicopter was flying, Russian state media TASS reported. The crew did not report any malfunction in the aircraft, operational services said.
After the helicopter disappeared, a search helicopter flew over the area where it was last spotted, Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov said. A ground rescue team was also deployed to search for the aircraft, searching along the Bystraya River valley over which the helicopter would have flown.
On Saturday afternoon local time, Solodov said the search team was continuing to search for the helicopter and its passengers in darkness and bad weather.
The investigative transport department of Kamchatka is conducting an investigation into possible violations of the rules related to traffic safety and the operation of air transport, it said in a Telegram post.
Source :Skai
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