Skip to main content

25 killed in Afghan army helicopter crash: officials

An Afghan army helicopter carrying 25 people crashed in western Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing all those on board, officials said.

The aircraft crashed due to "bad weather" in Anar Dara district, which borders Iran, Farah provincial governor spokesman Nasir Mehri said.

The Taliban claimed its militants brought it down.

Both pilots and 23 passengers were killed.

Among the dead were the deputy army corps commander for western Afghanistan and the head of the Farah provincial council, Mehri said.

Provincial council member Dadullah Qaneh said the helicopter hit a mountain peak in poor weather en route to neighbouring Herat province.

Senior government and military officials often travel by helicopter in regions where the Taliban has a large presence.

Helicopter crashes are not uncommon in the mountainous, war-torn country.

In September, an Afghan military helicopter carrying weapons and ammunition burst into flames during an "emergency landing" in Farah, killing at least four people.

Earlier that month at least 12 people were killed, including two Ukrainians, when a helicopter owned by a Moldovan company crashed in the northern province of Balkh.

The aircraft also was carrying munitions and exploded on impact, Afghan officials said.

Western forces have been rebuilding Afghanistan's air force, which was decimated by the civil war of the 1990s and the turbulent period of Taliban rule that ended in 2001.

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation's (Nato) Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan has been training pilots and ground controllers across the country as part of a modernisation effort.

United States Forces' officials told AFP in February that Afghanistan's air force includes four C-130 transport aircraft, 24 C-208 supply planes, 24 Russian Mi-17 helicopters that will be replaced by 159 UH-60 Black Hawks, 12 A-29 Super Tacano attack planes, and 25 MD-530 attack helicopters.



from The Dawn News - Home https://ift.tt/2EVlCeR
via IFTTT
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sialkot police bust gang of robbers, seize over Rs20m looted cash

SIALKOT: Police on Tuesday claimed to have busted an infamous gang of robbers and seized Rs20.3 million looted cash from their possession, ARY News reported. A spokesperson for the police confirmed the arrests saying the eight-member gang had looted a pharmaceutical company’s truck full of medicine. He said the looted cash to the tune of Rs20.3 million was also recovered from their possession. The police said the recovered cash and truck have been handed over to their owner. Read More: Youngster battles for life as Punjab police ‘mistakenly’ opens fire on him Earlier, on June 20, Karachi police had apprehended six robbers allegedly involved in a bank robbery of Rs10.5 million last month. The robbers had produced Rs9 million from the bank robbery in front of the police after being taken under arrest. The police also recovered the weapons used by the criminals in the bank robbery. The gang was stated to have a previous record of robbing various places in the city, the police said. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Peshawar security forces kill four suspected terrorists

The Peshawar Counter-Terrorism Department personnel gunned down four suspected terrorists after raiding their hideout on the Kohat Road Monday. According to the security forces, the suspects were plotting an attack. A cache of weapons and ammunition has been seized too. On Monday evening, a special CTD team raided the hideout after surrounding it and exchanged fire with them. No CTD personnel was injured in the operation. from SAMAA https://ift.tt/2V8MRbn
Post a Comment
Read more

Headlines 9am: Karachi to face power outages, coronavirus cases rise

Here are the headlines from SAMAA TV’s 9am bulletin. Pakistan has begun reporting fewer coronavirus infections in the last couple of days. In the last 24 hours, 3,964 cases were reported with 105 deaths. Around 73,000 recoveries have been confirmed so far. Three people were killed in a collision between a motorcycle and ambulance on the Mehran highway. A child was injured as well. Robbers looted a house in Karachi’s Azizabad in broad daylight and in the presence of a policeman. The cop chased the thieves but they were able to escape. SAMAA TV has acquired a CCTV footage of the robbery. A terrorism bid has been foiled in Peshawar. During a raid, security forces eliminated four terrorists. A cache of weapons and ammunition has been recovered. Saudi Arabia has announced it would hold a “very limited” Hajj this year owing to the coronavirus pandemic, with pilgrims already in the kingdom allowed to take part. The Kingdom has informed Pakistan about it as well. Pakistan’s Religious A...
Post a Comment
Read more